


The Coffee Shop

by Enx2103



Category: Life with Derek
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, College, Dasey - Freeform, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-30
Updated: 2018-07-05
Packaged: 2019-05-31 09:23:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 30,003
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15116486
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Enx2103/pseuds/Enx2103
Summary: The much needed Dasey Coffee Shop AU where Casey (who's still the overachieving Keener) works at the Coffee Shop on campus in Queens. Thats where she meets Derek (who's still a hockey god with a superiority complex.) Awesomeness ensured.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> The Coffee Shop  
> Disclaimer: I don't own LwD  
> AN: Please note: This is a repost of my story on Fanfiction.net. Edited and revised.

**The Coffee Shop:  
Chapter 1**

Casey was still new to working at the coffee shop, brilliantly named _The Coffee Shop_.

"It's supposed to be meta," her boss explained, "Imagine all the people who will fall in love in here. When they say 'I fell in love with a coffee shop' ... they'll actually mean here!" he explained way too enthusiastic about the idea.

Although Casey was a romantic at heart, even she thought it was weird. Who actually falls in love in a coffee shop? That was straight out of a movie, and as the hard truth of reality reminded her on a daily basis, the real world did not compare to the movie. Not even a little bit.

Regardless of the ridiculous name, she was starting to fall in love with the small coffee shop. Getting free coffee really helped her bank account, because her caffeine intake was probably way too high, to begin with, and it started to take a toll on her finances.

Aside from saving money, it had the added bonus of being quiet too. Unless of course, it was the morning rush, The Coffee Shop was pretty quiet, and Casey liked quiet. When it got slow, the quiet let her concentrate on her studies, which were pretty overwhelming. She took the biggest course-load the school allowed her to and she worked in-between class breaks, along with being part of the dance team. She had little to no time for herself.

To be honest she didn't need to work at all actually. Her tuition was completely covered by her father. And being a top student meant she was on the receiving end of a few small scholarships every once in a while. But living on campus became expensive. And she didn't want to trouble her mom any more than she already did. So, she worked on campus to make ends meet.

* * *

She had only been working at The Coffee Shop for two weeks when it happened.

It was quiet, right after the morning rush. There were only two or three people sitting at tables reading, or taking advantage of the free Wi-Fi. That's when she saw someone park their car (which seemed to have been in an accident recently due to the massive dent on the left side fender) directly outside the Coffee Shop…which just so happened to be in a 'no parking zone', but the driver didn't seem to care.

She recognized him the second he stepped out of his car. It was hard not to. He was one of the most popular guys on the entire campus.

Everyone knew Derek Venturi.

Yes, even Casey.

She had gone to some of the home games with Emily, who squealed about Derek 75% of the time. But Casey had never actually met the guy. She had to admit that even she had a little crush on him. He was always strolling and smirking around campus in his leather jacket, with a cool and collected aura about him. Even though the hustle and bustle of campus, he was never running to class, he was _never_ in a rush. He always took his time. And the way he walked around, with that swag in his step, it just looked like a close-up shot of _that_ _boy_ , at the beginning of any teen comedy.

It was pathetic, but Casey couldn't help it.

He made his way inside the shop, a pair of dark Ray-Ban sunglasses covering his eyes; which Casey was thankful for, she did not want to be on the receiving end of the looks Derek was famous for. However, when he strolled in, he let the door slam behind him, which c'mon, RUDE! There were people studying; way to break the nice, calm vibe. That was when she knew it wasn't going to be a pleasant exchange.

"Large coffee. Black," he practically growled at Casey from the other side of the counter.

"Coming right up," she replied, forcing a smile because that's the way she treated customers. Even the grumpy ones, like Derek.

Casey turned toward the counter behind her. She pulled out a large paper cup from the stack before filling it with coffee. She easily put the lid on top before slipping the cardboard sleeve around the cup so he didn't burn his hands. She turned back towards Derek and placing his coffee onto the counter.

He had left a few crumpled-up bills on the counter for her by the time she turned around. Casey counted it easily before looking up at him awkwardly. "Uh, sorry this isn't enough," she muttered while uncomfortably staring at the money he had left on the counter for her.

Derek looked down at the money in her hands with pursed lips. "That's what Kendra always charges me," he scoffed, sounding offended by Casey.

"Do you usually get a small?" she replied, knowing that exact amount for a small cup of coffee.

"No, I always get large," he replied, his features tight and tense.

"Well, I am not Kendra..."Casey breathed out, "would you like a small?" she asked Derek.

"Ugh," Derek groaned before pulling a few more wads of cash out of his pocket and slamming them onto the counter. He didn't bother to unfold them for Casey. "Clearly you don't know who I am," he grumbled, completely annoyed with Casey.

But, the thing is Casey knew who he was. Of course, she knew, but she looked back at him blankly. "Sorry, am I supposed to?" she asked, secretly thanking her acting teacher in high school. Because acting cool and collected in front of a guy that attractive was hard. Having to be a bitch to him, to bring down his ego, wasn't easy either.

She saw the muscles in his jaw literally tighten as he gritted his teeth, looking like a combination of mad and confused. "Ohhh, you're one of _those_ girls aren't you?" he asked, "I can totality tell. A stickler for protocol. You probably spend every free second in the library where organizing your notes is the most fun you have all week, isn't it." He teased, not so playfully, as he watched her count the additional bills he had given her.

She busied herself with counting the money and getting him the correct change. He, on the other hand, gulped down at least half of his black coffee within seconds, leaving Casey to believe that he was nursing a hangover.

"Yeah, that's exactly who I am," she finally replied dryly. She wanted to say more, God did she want to, but she also wanted to keep her job. And she couldn't disrespect a customer so soon. Even if he was asking for it.

He stared at her for a second, about to mouth off some more but his phone interrupted him. She watched him stare at the screen with a wince across his face. Clearly it wasn't a call he wanted to take, but still, he took it anyway.

"Dad, I told you it wasn't me!" He claimed, speaking into his phone.

 _That was one hell of a greeting,_ Casey thought.

"I swear I wasn't drinking last night!" He argued.

A lie, Casey could tell as Derek pressed his fingers into his temple. A splitting headache from a reckless night of drinking would do that to you, she would know.

"Look, it was an accident okay? Can't you work something out?" he asked while running a hand over his face, looking for a way to ease the tension, "... is that Marti?" Derek asked, a hint of interest spiking in his voice.

Casey pushed his change onto the counter in front of him, hoping he would just leave.

She watched him as he pocketed all the money, not leaving her any sort of tip. He picked up his cup and made its way to a table near the front of the shop. It was still within earshot and Casey could hear the rest of the conversation. Even though she told herself not to, she couldn't help it. He was disturbing the entire vibe of the coffee shop!

"Hey Smarti," he started again, with a completely different tone.

He was smiling, even! He looked good with a smile.

"What's wrong?" he asked while frowning, "Woah, Woah, stop crying Smarts, start over…. Why were you at moms? Was Ed with you? ...No Smarti, he probably just had a work thing," he promised her, "Hey… how about you beg dad to come up and see one of my games soon? You know I've been missing my good luck charm! …I know Smarts, I'm sorry but I'm too busy to come to visit you. Look, dad's really mad at me right now, I crashed The Prince last night, and I'm already late for class, so just tell dad I'll call him later okay? And make sure to give him hell for me, okay?" he asked, another genuine smile spreading across his lips. "Love you too, kiddo." He added before hanging up.

"Der bear!" Kendra squealed, the second she entering the shop, a whole ten minutes late for her shift. If she would have been there on time maybe Casey wouldn't have had to deal with Derek. She made a beeline for Derek, her smile wide and bright like he had just made her day just by being there. She bent down in front of him, wrapping him up in her arms.

"Hey," he replied, in a sleepy exhausted voice. That fight with his dad must have taken all the aggression out of him. He wrapped one arm around her shoulder, kissing her cheek innocently. "Teach the new girl how to ring me up _properly_ okay?" he suggested before getting up with a sigh and walking out of the shop.

He didn't give Casey a sparing glance.

Kendra shot at Casey confused look. "What happened?" she asked, walking past the counter and into the back room to put her stuff.

"He ordered a large. I rang him up for a large. How dare I?" Casey explained sarcastically, loud enough for Kendra to hear her from the back.

"Casey!" Kendra yelled, "Derek's..." Kendra stopped trailing off to take a deep breath, "he's kind of a big deal." She added before appearing in front of Casey once more. She was now wearing her black apron with The Coffee Shop's logo on the center, and her name tag pinned above her heart.

"So, you like him?" Casey asked bluntly. Because after two weeks she was starting to get a feel for who Kendra was. And she was usually not that friendly with customers. Derek must be special.

Kendra looked at Casey with an amused smile. "Hun, _everyone_ likes Derek."

"Guess I didn't get the memo." Casey shrugged, heading towards the backroom to get her things.

"You're still going to ring him up the same way, aren't you?" Kendra called out to her, sounding disappointed.

"Yeah, I am," she nodded to herself, "Did you date?" Casey asked after she had finished in the back. She had class in ten minutes and she really had to run. But she had to know.

"Me and _Derek_?" Kendra asked. As if Casey could possibly be speaking about anyone else.

"Yeah."

"We went to the same high school, we were on again off again for a few months during my junior year. Nothing serious. Why?" Kendra asked, narrowing her eyes at Casey as a target.

"Cause you still seem to have feelings for him." Casey shrugged before slipping into her jacket and pulling her bag over her shoulder.

Kendra stared back at her for a second. "Like I said, everyone likes Derek. But no, I'm over that. We're just friends now. I cut him some slack-"

Casey decided to cut her off. "I'm sure _everyone_ cuts him slack." She groaned because that was the problem. That's why he had such an attitude because everyone let him get away with it. But not Casey. She refused.

"Casey, you don't even know him." Kendra fought, crossing her arms over her chest defensively.

"And I don't intend on getting to know him either." She added, pouring herself a cup of coffee to go in her bright pink thermos. She was definitely going to need it since she still had a very long day ahead of her.

"But if you did, you'd understand why I cut him slack. He might be a golden boy here, but Derek has gone through a lot. He's earned it!" Kendra continued to defend the boy.

"Ohh boo-hoo." Casey mocked, turning to face Kendra. "What happened? He didn't get to be captain till senior year."

"More like his parents got into a very messy divorce and he practically raised his brother and sister while his dad worked and..." Kendra trailed off, closing her mouth, "You know what, it doesn't matter. You don't care, that's fine. I'll just tell him to avoid your shifts." Kendra shrugged.

"Sounds perfect," Casey finished with a smug smile before disappearing from the shop into the breezy afternoon. She had class to get to.

 


	2. Chapter 2

**The Coffee Shop:  
Chapter 2**

"So, are you ready for some 'oh my god' worthy news?" Casey teased Emily when they walked out of their lecture hall together the following day.

"Born ready," Emily beamed, excited about new information. "Hit me!" she squealed as they pushed their way through the crowd of students as they exited the classroom and building.

"Derek Venturi came into The Coffee Shop yesterday." Casey started, looking at Emily and awaiting the reaction she knew was bound to come.

She was itching to tell Emily all about it the day before, but after said Derek run-in, she was swamped. First, it was with class, then with dance practice which gave her little time to eat and shower before cramming in some time at the library till closing. By the time she came back to their shared dorm, she was in no mood to discuss Derek Venturi. She fell asleep once she hit the mattress.

"No way! You actually spoke to him? Was it amazing?" Emily asked, speaking at a mile a minute. Emily was fascinated by Derek and the entire 'beyond gorgeous' hockey team.

"It was everything _but_ amazing Em." Casey sighed, shoulders falling in disappointment. She had such high hopes too! "It was actually horrible," Casey frowned, "and I can not stand to have you idolize the guy any longer." Casey declared, giving Emily a pointed look.

Emily's eyes went wide with shock. "Why?!" she whined like a wounded kitten. "What happened?" she asked with a frown pulling at her lips. She was already upset, and she hadn't even heard the details of the _horrible_ exchange.

Casey led them through the hustle and bustle of campus, leading them to their next class (Economics) that they shared together.

"He came in while clearly nursing a hangover," Casey explained with a roll of her eyes, remembering the moment too clearly for her liking. "I think he crashed his car the night before, I saw a dent. He must have been drunk," she shrugged, "and then he went off on me when I charged him for the large black coffee he ordered. Apparently, Kendra always charges him for a small. Anyway, he went on and ranted about how I _clearly_ didn't know who he was. He claimed I was one of _those_ girls, basically calling me a nerd. Which okay, I might be, but still! Rude much? He's just so... Ugh!" Casey groaned, throwing her head back. "He thinks he's king of the world and that we are all beneath him. He's suck a...a... _dick_!" she finally cursed. And Casey almost never cursed. So clearly Derek was having an effect on her. A bad effect.

"Whoa, language," Emily gasped. Her frown deepened, still clearly conflicted with her feelings toward _the_ Derek. "But... how well did he look? Like, on a scale of one to ten?" Emily had to ask with a laugh, hoping that his appearance could redeem his actions.

"I refuse to answer that question now that I know what he's _really_ like!" Casey huffed, trying to act madder than she really was. Because she knew even with a hangover, Derek looked amazing up close and in person. But that meant nothing when his personality was disgusting.

"Come on Case, everyone has bad days." Emily tried, nudging Casey's shoulder with her own.

"Yeah, but not everyone is treated like royalty and still finds room to complain!" Casey fought back, not giving Derek any leeway in the issue.

"You know...he definitely left an impression. I mean, you wouldn't be giving him any thought if he didn't. That or I'm right and he looked _good_." Emily dragged out the word slowly, winking playfully.

Casey chuckled along softly, shaking her head against better judgment. "He just got under my skin is all," she admitted with a shrug, "I mean...with the way you're always talking about him, even I was starting to fall for the guy. Until I meet him in person and realized just how big of an ego, and how big of a douche bag, he really is. So, no." Casey finished, mind made up on the subject of Derek Venturi.

"Well," Emily straightened up, looking straight ahead. "He's coming our way, so be nice." Emily coached Casey.

"No, no, no! I don't want to see him," Casey panicked.

She tried to figure out a way out of the encounter. She looked up and sure enough, he was walking towards them slowly, a look of determination across his features. And he licked his lips a little too slowly for Casey's taste. She looked away quickly, trying to look at anywhere but him, but he saw her looking, she was already screwed. She looked around campus looking for an exit strategy. But there was nothing she could do. She had a class that started in a few minutes, and she had to walk by him to get to the East building where her Econ lecture was being held. There was no way around it, she had to keep going straight.

"Hello ladies," Derek greeted them, looking between both Emily and Casey when he had reached the pair, stopping them in their tracks.

"Hey, Derek." Emily smiled. She brushed her curly hair behind her ear; trying to look their best in front of Derek was instinctive to most girls.

"Can I talk to you for a sec, Spacey?" he asked, turning towards Casey, flashing a bright smile that normally would have had her melting. But it wasn't going to work on her. She was officially immune to his specific brand of asshole.

Emily, on the other hand, didn't seem to be on Casey's level. She was squirming next to Casey, a small 'eep' escaped her which she tried to cover it up by clearing her throat.

Casey ignored the sound and focused on what Derek had said. Spacey? Had he read her name tag at work the day before? Was he being a tool on purpose... or was he just an idiot and couldn't read? The world may never know.

"Well, _I_   have to go. See you later, Case!" Emily smiled and waved before rushing off quickly, leaving Casey alone with Derek.

"It's Casey," she corrected, trying her best not to growl at him, or Emily for the matter. She wanted to send Derek packing, and quick.

"I like Spacey better," he shrugged like it was no big deal. Like they were old friends with countless nicknames and she simply had to get with the program.

"I am not speaking to you," Casey gritted out, brushing past him, hoping to catch up with Emily, who was walking ten times faster than her usual rate, which Casey cursed at in her head. She already knew she was going to be late to class because of Derek of all people.

"Come on, let me just explain," he pleaded, falling into step next to her.

"No, I don't want to hear an explanation. Thank you," she replied, giving him a smug, fake smile.

"But-" he pouted, clearly not used to hearing no.

"But nothing," she cut him off quickly, "I don't care, okay?" she asked while glaring back at him hard enough to make the point.

"I was having a really shitty day," he yelled, clearly frustrated with the girl in front of him.

That made her stopped dead in her tracks and turn completely towards him. "You were having a shitty day?" she asked, like the idea of that was impossible for her to understand. "And then you went and took it out on _me_?" she asked, raising an eyebrow, but she didn't give him a second to answer her rhetorical question. "Yeah, that makes perfect sense. Thanks for clearing that up. Now, if you don't mind. Leave me alone," she finished, turning away from him and picking up her pace while thinking that he wouldn't follow.

But he did, so no such luck there. But when did Casey ever have luck? She was crossing her fingers tight, hoping that she didn't embarrass herself in front of Derek. And the longer she interacted with him, the bigger the chance of it happening. And she didn't need to let Derek see her like that.

"I _do_ mind." He insisted behind her. "I'm trying to..." he trailed off with a heavy sigh.

She should have just walked away. She should have just dropped it! But it was so easy to fight with him, and she just couldn't let it go.

"Trying to what exactly?" she asked, turning around to face him once more.

He was directly behind her this time, making them way too close for comfort. But she pretends like the proximities didn't bother her.

She went on, not batting an eyelash, looking at him square in the eyes. "Apologize? 'Cause you're doing a really bad job at it!" she yelled. She was determined to make him feel bad about the day before. Because it was driving her crazy, it was only fair.

"I'm not _good_ at this kind of stuff," he admitted, looking down at the ground, looking defeated. He stuffed his hands into his pockets, eyes flicking back up to hers.

Being up this close to him, Casey noticed his eyes. They were a deep brown with time flecks of gold scattered across his iris, and his eyelashes were thick and long, casting perfect shadows along his cheekbones. And Casey should not be jealous of Derek's eyelashes, or just how pretty he was under the afternoon sunlight. Or how perfect his lips looked because that was just wrong. All types of wrong and she hates him by default. So it didn't really matter. Nope, not at all!

For a second there, while she looked at him, with his sad eyes and pouty lips, he looked innocent and... _defeated_.

She felt like he was letting her win, and she didn't like that. (She didn't even know they were playing a game to win or lose it!) But what she did know was how much she liked fighting with Derek. That was obvious. It was obvious yesterday, and at that moment, the sparks of pure rage and passion popping in the air around them…it was obvious she liked it. Liked it enough to make her late to class.

_Emily will cover the notes,_ she convinced herself, giving herself another reason to stay there with him.

Pretending not to be momentarily distracted by everything about him, Casey went on.

"What kind of stuff? Saying you're sorry? Clearly. 'Cause you're the golden boy aren't you?" And no, she didn't say golden boy because he literally had gold in his eyes. She didn't. You can't prove it. It wasn't going to haunt her for the rest of the day. She was fine. Everything was fine. "You get away with anything you want." She scoffed, annoyed for more reasons than one.

It seemed that those words triggered something in Derek. His face went stone hard instantly. She could practically see his defensive wall building up like bricks around him. "I do not!" he yelled back at her. His face all flushed and eyes blew all wide. He was mad. Casey had made him mad.

Good.

"Whatever," she sighed, turning around and headed towards class again. And a part of her, and she wasn't sure how big that part of her is, wanted him to chase after her. If he really meant it…if he really wanted to apologize he would… right? "Just leave me alone-"

"Derek," he cut her off.

"What?" she asked, turning halfway towards him. She cursed herself for being weak for not being able to leave well enough alone. He was already making her weak, and that simply didn't work.

"My name...it's Derek," he corrected, with an awkward cough. But he didn't make a move towards her.

"That's _nice_ ," she muttered, pulling her backpack higher onto her shoulder.

_I won't turn back. I won't turn back this time._ She chanted in her head as she walked away, eyes targets onto the building's entrance. She would not stop until she was inside and away from Derek. Surely he was going to follow her inside… right? Her heart slammed against her ribs. Why she was so nervous… she couldn't understand it. It wasn't the first time she was approached by an attractive guy. And it wasn't the first time she had to get into it with an idiot. So why was Derek having that kind of reaction on her? She didn't know why, but she knew that she'd rather not have to deal with Derek ever again. It was what was best for her confused emotions and her raging heart.

"So, we cool?" she heard him call from a few feet behind her. He almost sounded happy.

She closed her eyes tight, taking in a slow deep breath, but she didn't make a move towards him, she refused!

"Yeah, whatever." she finally mumbled the reply, making her way inside the building.

Silently she prayed that Emily had saved her a seat inside.

 


	3. Chapter 3

**The Coffee Shop:  
Chapter 3**

Casey was working the early bird shift the next time she saw Derek a few days after running into him.

"Seriously?" Casey groaned, rolling her eyes when she noticed who had just walked through The Coffee Shop door. She was thankful that the place had just emptied out its morning rush and she had no customers so she could spend the time insulting him. "Can you not take a hint, _dude_?" Casey asked making a big dramatic deal about him coming in during her shift.

Normally she would have just sucked it up and taken his order, pretending that none of their previous conversations had happened. She was usually the bigger person! But…she couldn't help it. Because she knew that if she started that way, he would feel the overwhelming urge to retaliate, and as she had discovered, she loved fighting with Derek. It was her fatal flaw in the tragedy that was her life, she realized. She had a weakness for obnoxious, smartass, mouthy boys it seemed. And she would do everything to provoke him when he came around. And _only_ when he came around, because she would not seek him out herself, she promised.

He looked up at her quickly, eyes already narrowed onto her, ready for a fight that she was looking for. "Oh, I can take a hint. But we both know you were just anxiously waiting for me to show up!" he countered, hitching an eyebrow in her direction as he walked towards the counter.

"I _really_ wasn't. And sadly now I'm going to lose my job because you did." She tsked, shaking her head slowly to add to the dramatics. Like it was a damn shame he was there.

"And why is that?" he asked, leaning his elbows on the top of the counter between them.

"Because my boss is going to walk out right when I'm in the middle of telling you to _shove it_. Or, I might just skip to the part where I pour your _large black coffee,_ " she mimicked his voice when ordering, "over your head." She replied calmly, with an easy shrug.

He didn't bat an eye at her threat. He already used to Casey, it seemed. "Well, we can't have that, now can we?" he asked, licking his lips slowly, eyeing her up and down from his position before standing up straight as if none of that had happened.

"No, we can't." She decided, clearing her throat. Two can play at that game. "So, you'll be leaving?" she asked, sounding hopeful. But they both knew it was all an act. She didn't want him to leave.

"No, but you'll give me my coffee because that's why I came here... shockingly enough," he stopped to add a fake gasp in, covering his mouth with his hand like an embarrassed school girl. "Imagine that... me in a coffee shop... for coffee!" Derek spoke, sarcasm dripping off his tongue easily.

"Yeah, right!" she scoffed, calling his bluff as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Believe it. Just hand over the goods and I'll get out of your way." He offered with a 'take it or leave it' shrug.

"Promise?" she teased, a smile playing at her lips.

"Pinkie promise," he smirked before extending his arm with his pinkie up waiting for her.

She dropped her smile, rolled her eyes, and turned back to make his coffee, leaving him and his pinkie promise clearly hanging. By the time she turned around to ring him up, he had laid out the appropriate amount of money due for a large black coffee. _Smart, he learned!_ She thought to herself.

He was already halfway out the door before he spoke again. "See you around Casey."

"Don't come in on my shifts Derek. I thought Kendra was going to warn you when I was in," she rushed to add before the door closed between them. She had to get the last word.

Derek caught the door before it closed, popped his head back inside to add. "She did. I just didn't take it as a warning," he added with a blank face, before letting the door close behind him.

She watched him through the window as he left. Sliding into his still dented car, and driving away almost instantly. Someone was clearly late to class.

* * *

The next four or five times Casey saw Derek, it was quiet and simple. Barely any words were exchanged at all. He'd stroll in, and before he'd even order, she'd turn around to hand over his large black coffee. He'd pay the correct amount and sometimes he would even drop his change into the tip jar. Sometimes he'll give her a polite smile or a half wave before disappearing.

But it was boring and Casey didn't like it.

She missed the spunk that a conversation -er _argument,_ with Derek always provided; leaving her flushed pink and excited. Although he still had the same effect on her no matter what, it wasn't the same. She was only left with anticipation during their small coffee exchanges now. Not fulfillment like before.

One night the routine changed a bit. He came in when Casey was working the late shift, they were almost closing actually. She couldn't understand why Derek, or anyone actually, needed coffee that late. Unless they had an all-nighter planned. But it was nowhere near midterms, so it didn't make sense. The Coffee Shop was completely empty when he strolled in.

Casey turned around pouring his coffee as she usually did when he came in. She rang him up and deposited his coffee money into the cash register easily.

"Actually, can I have a muffin too?" he asked, pointing to the chocolate ones in the display case. "Starving," he murmured almost to himself.

Casey couldn't help but wonder if he had bothered to have any dinner. But she pushed the thought to the back of her mind, and smiled at his choice. She pulled it out of the display self with the help of some wax paper, dropping it into a paper bag to go. Derek scrambled to get a few bills out of his pocket to cover the muffin charge. But Casey stopped him quickly.

"It's on the house," she shrugged.

"Is this a trick?" he asked, narrowing his eyes at her, trying to find her true intentions.

"It's almost closing," she replied, pointing at the clock behind her. "These will get thrown out anyway," she added, knowing no one else was coming in until morning.

He watched her for a minute, trying to call her bluff or not. "Thanks," he finally said with a half-smile before disappearing out into the rainy night.

Then that became the newest trend for a little while.

* * *

A few days later he decided to mix things up again. Because they couldn't just stick to a routine, that was too normal. So one night, after the sun had set and the stars started peeking out from their hiding places behind the clouds, Derek strolled in for his usual large black coffee and chocolate muffin.

But this time he didn't run out like he usually did. Instead, he stepped away from the counter and found an empty spot near the window, his back to Casey completely. He set his coffee down before slipping his laptop out of his messenger bag. He took a few cautious sips of his coffee while waiting for the computer to boot up.

Casey tried her best not to look. Instead, she looked around the mostly empty shop and he just so happened to be there! She told herself it wasn't creepy that she was staring at what he was doing on his computer, but she knew it was. She couldn't help it that everything about Derek made her so damn curious.

She saw the background on his computer. It was a picture of Derek smiling, holding the legs of a little girl who sat on his shoulders who wore a huge smile, showing all her teeth and there were even a few missing ones. And well, he shouldn't be allowed to be so adorable when he was such a dick. Because she had decided that he was a dick. No matter how long it had been since their last fight. Derek was a dick. It was just common knowledge.

Casey didn't watch him the entire time. Not the entire time...just most of it.

A customer came in, distracting her from Derek. But with that taken care of quickly, she had nothing to do.

So the next time her eyes flicked around she watched him put his headphone on and he had started up Face Time. Curiosity got the best of her; she needed to know who Derek was going to speak to. And it killed her because she wasn't supposed to care. She turned around, forcing herself **not** to invade his privacy. She busied herself fixing a few mugs, and cleaning up the counter with a dust rag. But none of it took her mind off the fact that Derek was still there and her skin was buzzing with excitement about it. And then he started talking, which made it very difficult to tune out. His voice was loud and echoing within the small space.

"Hey, punk! What are you doing?... Oh yeah, got some spare cash laying around? You should totally send it my way. I'm buying coffee like every day now, I'm strapped for cash Ed!... Yeah, yeah, whatever. Is Marti around? I promised her I'd call, but I figured I'd surprised her with Skype instead...Cool."

Casey finally turned around and saw Ed (a teenage boy of about fourteen or fifteen) on the screen. He had short dark hair, with a short quiff in the front and dark mysterious eyes. He looked devious, just as bad as Derek. _Definitely Derek's brother,_ Casey decided. But suddenly he wasn't on the screen anymore.

He was replaced by a little girl, running at the computer like a car without brakes. She looked about nine or ten years old. She had choppy bangs and two pigtails, and bright eyes that clearly Derek didn't get, and a smile that could light up an entire city. His little sister, Casey decided. _Smarti?_ Casey thought, remembering their first encounter and his conversation on the phone. _What was Smarti short for?_ She thought for a second.

The sound of Derek's chuckles filled the otherwise silent coffee shop instantly. It scared Casey how the sound of it alone made her stomach flutter around. She wanted to make Derek laugh like that...

"Hey Smarti," he spoke to the little girl. Casey eternally fist pumped, glad to know she was right. Then she felt bad, because wow, she really was that big of a creep, huh?

"Why aren't you in bed yet? Didn't you guys have dinner hours ago?" he teased, "I can't read you a book Smarts. The only book I have on me right now is my text book and I don't think you want to hear about this stuff. I don't want to hear about it... How about you read to me? A bedtime story, or are you too old for that now?" he teased.

Casey peeked up again a few minutes later because he had gone dead quiet. Smarti was on Ed's lap, turning pages of a small hardcover book, reading it to Derek, Casey assumed. Derek seemed to be enjoying himself, nodding along and "hmhming" every so often. He didn't click off the application, or dare do anything else as she read. He simply paid attention like the best kid in the entire class.

"That was awesome. Thanks, Smarts...but now it's past your bedtime, and dad's still mad at me, so sneak back into bed, okay? Night guys!" he finished with a soft chuckle.

After a while, Casey looked back up and saw a word document up on Derek screen. She couldn't tell what it was about but he seemed to be stuck staring at the blinking curser and a heading **.** She shouldn't interrupt, but she had to.

"She's cute." Casey commented, whipping down the counter with a cloth, as if she hadn't done that a few minutes ago. She just figured it was easier not to look at him.

Derek looked up, turning halfway toward her confused that she was even talking to him. "Marti?" he asked, brows furrowed. "She's my little sister...my sanity." He added with a grin before turning back to the table. He sighed at the blank document and simply closed his computer screen and stuffed it back into his bag quickly, packing up his things.

He was leaving and part of her was upset about it. She wanted him to stay and talk about his family, so she could know more about him.

"Your sanity?" she asked intrigued, hoping he would elaborate.

"She's been let down a lot for a kid...and I can't be another let down. She idolizes me for some stupid reason. She's the only reason I don't go off the rails completely." He shrugged, throwing his bag over a shoulder. He stood with his coffee and muffin in hand.

"Well then, I think you should probably see her soon then," Casey fired back almost instantly.

"You think I'm off the rails?" he asked with a soft chuckle. Like she had no idea what it meant for Derek to go off the rails. Like she was kidding herself.

Instantly she wanted to take it back. Which was strange, she never felt like taking anything horrible thing she said to Derek back. But this was about Family… this was different. "I'm sorry I didn't mean-"

"No, no, you're right. I _do_ need to see them. I'm hoping my dad comes up for my next game and brings her along. She's pretty cute. She wears my jersey like a dress and screams and yells like a pro out in the stands." He smiled, clearly remembering a memory in his head by the looks of it.

"That sounds..." Casey started, trailing off picturing it perfectly, "like the most adorable thing ever." Casey sighed, hunching over the counter in hopes to get closer to him.

Derek stared at her for a second, licking his lips slowly as if he was trying to figure her out. He made his way over to the counter, leaning his side against it. It brought the two of them very close, but neither made a move to pull back. He was just confused by this girl. "You're strange Casey," he told her. It wasn't an insult, just an observation.

"Am I?" she asked, _almost_ smiling, but she held it in, not allowing Derek to see the way he could manipulate her emotions.

"You wouldn't let me talk to you at all before, completely blowing me off! So, I stopped trying and now _you_ actually started a conversation with me... about my _sister_?" he asked sounding very confused. "I don't know, you're strange...but I like that." He decided, nodding along with the idea that was spinning around in his head.

"You do?" she countered, clearly doubting him.

"I like a challenge." He admitted.

"I'm starting to realize that." She replied softly. This was weird, they weren't yelling or glaring. They were talking like normal people.

"So, why the sudden change?"

"You weren't a dick this time."

"Fair enough," he nodded, pushing himself away from the counter. "I should get out of here." He declared with a half wave. He stopped short with his hand on the door knob and looked at her again. "Case," he added.

"Hm..?" she hummed, looking up at him. Case... he hadn't used that nickname yet. But she preferred this one over Spacey.

"For future reference, I can definitely see your reflection in the glass," he added before stepping out in the cold night.

And Casey didn't eternally scream. She didn't because she didn't care and because clearly, she wasn't looking. Nope!

Really, she should just quit her job…that would save her the humiliation of ever seeing Derek in there again.

* * *

"Ca _s_ ey!" Derek called her name in a cheery mood when he walked into the coffee shop a few days later.

Casey was working the morning shift that particular day. And she wasn't in the best of moods. But Derek coming in, practically singing her name like that, well…she had to do it back. "Derek." She replied in the same tone, not being able to hide the smile from her face, because he knew that she knew he wasn't a complete douche, she was allowed to smile around him. And maybe she didn't just love fighting with Derek. Maybe she just liked being around him all together?

"I realized something," he started, running his tongue over his teeth, leaning against the counter with his elbows, completely invading her personal space. No other customer ever did anything like that. But this was Derek, so Casey thought it was okay.

"What did you realize?" she asked after handing over his coffee and putting the cash into the register.

"That I am at a disadvantage with you." He pointed out before taking a sip of the delicious brew.

"And why is that?" she asked confused.

"Because you totally played the sister card, and made me look like a giant sap." He groaned into his coffee.

"And that's a bad thing?" she teased.

"Well, yeah. You should consider yourself lucky!"

Funny, because Casey thought luck was never on her side. "And why is that?" she had to ask.

"Because not many people get to see that side of me." He admitted, looking down at the counter, licking at any leftover coffee on his lips.

"Yeah?" she asked softly, hoping he would look back up at her. Because she had realized just how much she liked looking at the golden boy's golden brown eyes.

"Just Sam," Derek admitted. "He's my best friend since like birth." Derek explained.

"Sam Richards?" Casey beamed, ears picking up.

" _You_ know, Sam?" Derek asked, narrowing his eyes in disbelief.

"You mean the gorgeous blonde goalie on the hockey team? Oh, I know him," she smiled, laying it on real thick. Because she did know Sam.

"And you also know he's on the hockey team... but you don't know me?" Derek sighed, shaking his head as if he couldn't believe her.

"He's in my Econ class," Casey shrugged like it was no big deal.

"So, being that you know Sam, I think you should come to one of our games so I can redeem my man card! Obvious you'll cheer for Sammy since we both know you wouldn't waste your breath cheering for me..." He trailed of, sounding bummed about it.

"Oh!" Casey gasped in mock surprised. But Derek seemed to believe her. "You're on the hockey team, too?" she asked.

"Seriously?!" he deadpanned, rolling his eyes. He nearly gulped down half his coffee after that one.

Casey hid her smile, and ignored his last comment. "I'll consider it." She replied to the idea of coming to his game.

"Really?" he asked, not convinced. "Well, that was easier than I thought." He replied, standing up straight.

"Don't get too confident. It's really not that big of an effort when I'm at practically every home game." She told him. Because although she was officially on board with the 'flirt with Derek' memo, she was not going to let his ego swell more than it already was.

"Wait... _you_ watch hockey." He chuckled, almost choking on some of his coffee.

"Religiously. Surprised?" she asked hitching an eyebrow, begging him to call her out on it.

"So... you knew." It finally dawned on him. "This whole time you knew who I was?" he asked, a grin spreading across his lips like he had solved the world's biggest problem.

She thought he'd be mad when he found out, not happy. "Of course I knew. Even us nerds know who _Derek Venturi_ is." she rolled her eyes, putting emphasis on his name.

"Then why did you let me believe you didn't?"

"Because your name means nothing to me, Derek. Your name does not make you being a dick suddenly okay. I'm not going to just bow down because of it." She countered while crossing her arms over her chest in defense.

He nodded, but didn't really reply to her last comment. "So, religiously, huh?" he asked slowly.

"I sense you doubting me," she scoffed.

"It's just-"

Casey cut him off quickly. "You think I know _nothing_ about the game, that I'm just a nerd who couldn't possibly follow plays and understand the depths of the game."

"I didn't say that!" He defended himself while putting out his free hand up in defense.

"My dad..." Casey started with a heavy sigh, "he was always working. He never had the time to come see one of my plays or dance competitions. The only time I got to spend with him was on the couch watching hockey with him right before bed. And if that wasn't enough to shut you up, I know the actual physic behind hockey. I know at exactly what angle you need to hit the puck, with exactly how much force you'd need to score a goal. In fact, I could probably teach you a thing of two." She finished with a smug smile.

He wanted to comment on the fact that he knew the feeling, about her dad. But he didn't comment on it. "Normally I'd feel offended by your lack of confidence in me. But I'm intrigued. Teach me your ways, Princess," he replied, giving her a half smile.

She narrowed her eyes, but didn't deny him. "Maybe," she finally replied, dragging the word out her lips.

"Okay, I should get out of here." He decided hearing someone come into the shop. "So, Friday. I'll see you there?" he asked, stepping away from the counter, letting the woman step into his place.

"If you're lucky." Casey smiled.

"I'm always lucky," he replied, sounding very confident.

And for some reason, she believed him. Maybe she was biased and still mad at him for getting everything he wanted and for being treated like royalty.

"I guess we'll see." She mumbled, before taking the new customer's order.

 


	4. Chapter 4

**The Coffee Shop:  
Chapter 4**

"Were you at my game on Friday?" Derek asked the second he came into the coffee shop the following Monday. "I didn't see you in the stands. And I was looking for you," he admitted while looking a bit embarrassed by it. "Were you even there?" he accused Casey.

Casey was working the afternoon shift that Monday. She still hadn't figured out how Derek knew her schedule which changed weekly, but somehow he always managed to come in during her shift. Was Kendra still helping him with that? That must get annoying, she figured. Especially given their history…

But none of that mattered because of what Derek had said. He was looking for her. Derek was looking for Casey…on purpose…to see her…at his game…that he invited her to. It was just too much. How was she supposed to react to that?

"Aww, you were looking for me?" she cooed as if it was the most adorable thing in the world. She almost wanted to reach out and pinch his cheek, but she wasn't sure how he'd react to the physical contact. After all, besides a few brushes of fingers, they hadn't really touched at all. Which was fine, but it was strange... so she held back.

He didn't reply, he just stared at her with his eyebrows knitting together, like he was already annoyed by her.

"Nah, I missed it." She answered shaking her head, "I had to join my fellow nerd's in the library. There was a very important cult meeting. Sorry," she replied smoothly without a hitch in her story.

He simply stared at her for a second, waiting for her to say more. But when she didn't he replied. "You really didn't come?" he asked, slumping against the counter while waiting for his black coffee. He looked like a puppy that had just been kicked. And Casey wanted nothing more than to run her hands through his hair and pet him.

Well, there goes her story. She was hoping to drag it out a bit longer, but she didn't like seeing him like that. It was no fun when he was actually hurt by her words.

"Oh, relax you, big baby! I was there," she replied, shoving his coffee into his hands, hoping that would lighten his clearly damp mood. "You didn't play _too_ bad," she teased. "Sam was awesome though," she added, biting her tongue to hold back her laughter. "I wish I could have told him so after the game," she added, clicking her tongue against her teeth, with a sly smirk.

_She went to his game with Emily just like she always did. Nothing was really different. Except for this time, her eyes didn't stray from Derek's position on the ice. He really was good, and it killed her to admit it. He managed to score one goal, but he spent most of the game assisting other players._

_Emily, on the other hand, spent the entire game teasing Casey's reactions to Derek. When he scored, got slammed into the boards, or when he got benched (which totally happened, and Derek getting mad on the ice was a little more attractive than Casey was prepared for)…there was a different reaction every time. It seems like Emily's new favorite past time included making fun of Casey's ridiculous crush on Derek._

_To be honest, Casey didn't even notice Sam until Emily pointed him out in the third period. He was good too, but not good enough to keep Casey's attention._

"Well, if you would have found me like I _thought_ you were going to, you could have officially met him. I would have even put in a good word." He replied dryly. His eyes told a different story though as he gave her a sideways glance at her before taking a few gulps of his coffee in a huff. "But," he started again, his tone changing with a half-smile tugging at the side of his mouth, "I'm glad you came." He finished with his eyes lighting up in a way that made Casey weak in every way possible. "At least _someone did,_ " he added, clearly hinting that someone had missed his game.

"Dad didn't come, huh?" she asked softly, knowing that feeling all too well. Her dad never came to any of her events. It sucked. And a large coffee did not make something like that suddenly better.

"No..." he breathed out, "He had a work thing. Again." Derek explained while making a face like he didn't believe his father. "Marti and Ed stayed with my mom, _again_ ," he emphasized, rolling his eyes.

"I'm sorry," she finally said after a few seconds of silence.

"Yeah, me too." He nodded while his fingers were busying themselves by brushing over his hot cup of coffee.

"Hey, I was thinking...whenever he does come around for a game, I'd love to meet Marti," Casey shrugged yet knowing that talking about Marti was a sure fire way to make Derek feel better. Marti was his anchor, Casey had learned.

"You won't hang out with _me_ , but you'd love to meet my sister?" he asked cautiously, raising an eyebrow in her direction, clearly doubtful.

Technically Derek never asked Casey to hang out with him, so there was an obvious flaw in his theory, but she wasn't going to point it out. "Oh yeah!" Casey nodded, "I want to shake her hand and thank her for her duties to this country. Get that girl a metal or something. Or, you know just ice cream." She shrugged with a soft laugh.

"What duties?" he scoffed.

"Taming the wild Derek Venturi!"

"Oh come on, I'm not _that_ bad."

"I'm not convinced."

He stared at her for a moment, his tongue peeking out of the corner of his lips. He looked like he was debating something in his head. After a moment he replied, "So let me convince you?" He offered with a completely different tone.

"And how would you do that?" Casey teased back because she could.

"I'll buy you a burger," he countered like it was the most obvious thing in the world. Burgers are always convincing, clearly.

"How romantic," she shot back instantly, rolling her eyes not impressed.

"Well, I wasn't going for romantic. You made it clear that you weren't, and will _never_ be into me," he shrugged, trying not to look bothered by it, but she could tell he was. "So, it's not a date. Just two hungry people eating burgers. Unless..." he trailed off, a smirk playing at his lips.

Casey didn't fall for the bait. Although she would have liked to hear what that 'unless...' entailed, she wasn't going to make this easy for Derek. That wasn't fun. If he was interested, which she was starting to realize that he maybe sort of was, then he was going to have to work a little harder for it. Just because she was smitten with the idea of Derek didn't mean she believed he wasn't just trying to get her into bed like the rest of the boys.

"Unless nothing. Do I get fries and a milkshake too?" she asked, pressing the issue harder. She knew she should just take what she could get, but that was never fun.

Derek sighed, hanging his head low in defeat. "Oh, come on, I just had to get The Prince fixed. You're lucky I can afford a burger," he whined.

"The _Prince_?"

"My car."

_You named your care The Prince_ , she wanted to ask. But didn't. Not yet. She couldn't offend his car yet. She knew guys were very sensitive about their cars. "Right. So, no milkshake?" she asked pouting.

"No milkshake." He replied with a half-smile.

She hoped the look meant he found her endearing but she couldn't tell. She couldn't read him that well, not yet. "Fine." she breathed out, making it sound like going out for burgers with Derek was the biggest burden in the world.

"Meet you at Mike's around 8?" Mike's was the best cheapest burger joint in the 5-mile radius of Queens Campus.

"What, you're not picking me up?" she asked baffled by the idea of meeting him there.

"It's not a date, why would I pick you up?" he asked halfway out the door with a smirk that Casey had been warned about. And now she knew why.

"Cause you have a car," she gaped, ignoring the way her stomach flipped.

"Well, we'll see. If you're lucky," he smiled.

"I'm always lucky!" she called out, using his line from the other day against him.

But to be honest it was a total lie. She was _never_ lucky. At least that's what she thought. It turns out that her luck was changing and it was because of Derek.

At about 7:45, right before the end of Casey's shift, Derek pulled up to The Coffee Shop to pick her up.

* * *

"Okay, it's your turn now," he decided while stuffing fries into his mouth at the speed of light.

Casey never understood boys' metabolism. The way he could somehow stuff so much food into his body, yet be so physically fit, (not that she had seen Derek shirtless, but he was a hockey player after all). Casey knew he had a killer body, she could tell even through the layers of clothes he wore.

"My turn?" she asked while eyeing him over her cheeseburger. She was confused.

"You know entirely too much about my family, and I know almost nothing about yours. And that seems to be the only thing we can talk about without pissing each other off so..." he trailed off while reaching into the basket of fries once more.

To clarify, he didn't buy her fries, he said he wouldn't. However, he did get a large order of fries, for him of course, and placed him in the middle of the table, and pushed it in her direction every time he reached for more. It was kind of cute, she had to admit, but Casey refused to take the bait because he said it wasn't a date. It was a burger. So she was going to eat her burger, her burger alone, and that was that.

Normally Casey would reprimand him for talking with his mouth full…but it was sort of endearing when he did it. And he was right, family was a common ground for them, she liked that. She liked talking about her family; she was feeling pretty homesick lately.

"I have a sister. Lizzie. She's 15, sophomore in high school now. She's captain of the girls' soccer team. I'm really proud of her. She's into environmentalism, anything that's 'go-green!' It's just... it's awesome. Not many girls her age are into stuff like that. She recently begged my mom to let her dye her hair...she went blonde with purple streaks...we were not expecting that. Took a while for mom be okay with it." Casey explained while remembering the moment like it was yesterday.

"My mom is the best mom in the world. She tries so hard, at everything…at her job, and being there for us. She knew she couldn't take our dad's place, but she would do her best so we didn't feel like we needed him around, you know? Like she's our biggest cheerleader. No matter what I do, she's there with a banner cheering her heart out. She's like... the grown-up version of Marti," Casey added, with a smile. "And just like you with Marti... all I want to do is make her proud." She admitted shyly.

"What about your dad?" Derek asked.

Casey sighed. "He's in New York now. He's been there ever since the divorce. He sends us cards and gifts randomly, to make up for not being around. But we don't see him much. Not unless we go to New York to visit him. But sometimes, it's just..." She trailed off.

"Yeah, I know." Derek filled in for her, knowing the feeling well. "So it's just the three of you, huh?" he asked, changing the subject.

"Yep, our own quiet little girls' club. Everything in our house is pink...or was until Lizzie started replacing her pink for purple." Casey beamed.

"Oh god." Derek groaned in disgust.

Casey laughed in reply, "Boys' club in your house?" Casey teased back.

He quickly nodded. "Ever since mom left, yeah. I mean, Marti loves purple too, her entire room is full of it, just like Lizzie," he stopped to chuckle, "but it's basically what you'd expect from three guys living together."

Casey wrinkled her nose, imagining the smell of such a boy's club. "What's your family like? I really don't know _that_ much." She insisted while biting back a smile, because yeah she did know a lot. More than Derek could imagine. But that's mostly because she was being a creepy stalker, but she didn't need him knowing that!

"Ed's like…14? 15?" he asked himself, looking up for a second, trying to remember. "I think," he shrugged, "just started high school this year. He's like a genius though, he jumped right into AP classes. Sucks though… I feel like high schools a big deal and I should be around more to help him out, but I'm not. FaceTime is the best I got right now. And it's frustrating 'cause he's been getting into a lot of trouble. I was…" he stopped, putting his burger down, cleaning his greasy fingers on a spare napkin before continuing, "I was a big deal in high school. And he's trying to live up to my name, and it's getting him into some bad stuff, and its stressing Dad out more than normal" Derek sighed, sounding pained about it.

"And Marti…she's 10. And well… you know all about her. She was pretty young when the divorce happened. She doesn't have any real family memories with Mom. But she sees her all the time... it's not the same. Mom didn't even _try_ to keep us. She didn't fight Dad at all. She didn't want us. We were holding her back. She wanted to travel. So she did for a few years. And now she's back in our hometown, and it's just… weird."

"Yeah, I know. I'm kind of glad Dad's in New York. It's easier that way."

"Tell me about it."

"What's your dad like?"

"He's a small town lawyer, and he works his ass off. He tries to give us everything we need but… but we're just a huge mess and I try to help out. I know I put one hell of a burden on him, but I do _try_. Especially now that I'm away and I recognize it more."

"Tell me about high school. I know you dated Kendra, and Sam's your best friend." Casey quickly added while trying not to focus on the Kendra part which has been nagging at her since day one.

"High school was a blast! Best time of my life. Social life I mean. Home was...a wreck. I took care of Ed and Marti as best I could, making sure they ate and did homework. But when they were good and taken care of, tucked into bed... I was really off the walls. Sneaking out, stealing my dad's car for joy rides, getting drunk and partying, and girls…" He trailed off. " I had, like, two 'serious' girlfriends, but it was nothing at the end of the day." He admitted, looking up at Casey.

Casey wasn't surprised to hear about Derek and girls. She knew if he was a golden boy in Queens, a giant campus, in a smaller town Derek was most certainly king. But regardless of knowing about it, hearing him say it was different. She didn't want to be just another girl on Derek's list…

"My grades were horrible until they got so bad they were going to take me off the team. And Coach went nuts! He said that as captain, I needed to prove myself to the rest of the team. So, I did what I had to do. I passed my classes, gave up the stupid teenager shit, and even got a job to help out my dad. I got really lucky that I got a full hockey scholarship here... My dad, I have no idea how he was going to pay for college, with everything else that he had going on." Derek blushed.

It took a few seconds to process what Derek had just said. "Money tight?" Casey asked softly, putting together why Kendra always charged Derek for a small. _"He might be the golden boy here, but Derek has gone through a lot. He's earned it."_ Kendra tried to explain to Casey that first day. That's why Derek was only taking Casey out for a burger? And is that why it hurt him so much to have to pay to fix the dent in his car. Or when he was talking to Ed on FaceTime and said he was strapped for cash and was buying coffee every day... did she have anything to do with that?

"Yeah..." Derek trailed off, "What about you? I want to know what you were like in high school," he asked, taking the attention off himself.

"Nothing as exciting as you. I assure you. I went to an all-girls school, Fletcher Academy for Girls. I was- I still am straight edge. You'd never given a thought to me if you knew me then. Just like now, I was a straight-A student, in a thousand clubs and doing dance. Had a few boyfriends, nothing serious…although I did date the captain of the football team from the boy's academy... it did not end well." She cringed.

"Doesn't sound like anything has changed. And I'm sure you would drive me just as crazy then as you do now," he noted before grabbing his burger again.

"I do _not_ drive you crazy."

"Yes, you do." He mumbled, with a small smile. Casey wasn't even sure if it was meant to be seen.

"Lies," Casey teased, sticking her tongue out at him playfully.

* * *

"Hey Case," Derek greeted her when he stepped into the coffee shop the following day.

"Der," she greeted with a small smile, turning around the counter to fill his usual order.

"No coffee today," he rushed before she poured the coffee into the large cup.

She froze, turning halfway towards him with the coffee pot still in hand. Ever since they went out for burgers, she started thinking about Derek and money. Did he have no money for coffee today? "No?"

"Nope, I'm broke today." He admitted, cheeks flushing.

Casey nodded, putting the pot down and turning towards him again. She wasn't sure what she could say to make that better. "So, what can I do for you Derek?" she asked, because if he wasn't there for coffee then what was he there for?

"I need to ask you something." He started, getting serious.

"Yeah?" she asked carefully. She wasn't used to seeing him like this.

"You're like really smart, right? I mean, I always see you reading your textbook when the shop's not busy. And I asked Sam and he said you're the smartest in the class and-"

"You asked Sam about me?" She injected, not being able to hide the smile. Because she never really spoke to Sam in class, so she had no idea what he would say about her. But still, Derek asked about her. That's what counts.

But he went on quickly like he hadn't heard her. "And you said you were a straight-A student. So, you're really smart...right?" he asked, looking up at her with hopeful eyes.

"Uh... sure? I guess so?" She sounded unsure of herself. She knew she was smart, but she didn't give herself enough credit.

"Can you..." He trailed off. He cleared his throat and started again. "Will you... help me out?" he asked. He sounded weird like he didn't use to having to ask for anything.

"Help you out _how_?" she asked narrowing her eyes. This sounded like a trick. And she wouldn't put it above Derek to trick her.

"I noticed you take Business Law, at least I think that's what your textbook says?" he commented, turning his head to read the binding of the book that was on the counter. She had been reading it when he had stormed in. "I'm taking it with Professor Liveson, I missed the quiz so my midterms worth 60% of my grade, and I'm kind of freaking out." He admitted while looking down at his hands. He hated admitting to failure, she noticed. "Do you think you can like study with me? Or teach me how to or something?"

"Uh..." she started as she was startled by the fact that Derek needed her help.

"I really need to pass this class. And I'm pretty sure you're like the smartest person I know," he continued.

"Flattery will get you nowhere," she teased before licking her lips. Because yes, flattery could get him far.

"I just..." he started stuffing his hands into his pockets with a defeated sigh. "Look. It's cool if you can't, I know you're busy and stuff-" he went on.

"Derek," she tried getting his attention again.

"Yeah?" he asked, looking up from his feet.

"I get off of work at four. Does that work for you?"

"Uh, yeah. That works." He nodded, eyes lightening up again.

"Okay," she smiled with a nod, "Now, this is the part where you ask for my number, so we can meet up later." She prompted him.

"Oh... right." He nodded before fishing his phone out of his pocket and sliding it over the counter to her.

Casey was surprised at how easily he handed it over. She figured he'd have a password on it or would have just entered it himself. But he seemed to trust her which was nice. You could tell a lot about a guy simply by his phone.

She picked the phone up, unlocking it easily and promising herself she would not snoop! And she didn't. But it was literally impossible for her to not notice his background. It was of the entire Queens hockey team on the ice. It looked like a yearbook photo. Not as cute as him and Marti but better than what she could have imagined his background was. Quickly, without snooping through his apps, she went into his contacts and added her name. She was pleased to know that she was the only Casey he knew.

"And you're supposed to be good at this," she scoffed while tapping her number into his phone. She was trying her hardest not to laugh.

"This is different," he defended himself with a small frown.

"Yeah, whatever," she smiled, handing his phone over, "I'll see you later." She promised.

"Cool." He nodded before stuffing his phone back into his pocket and shuffling out the door.

* * *

Casey showed up at the library with a large black coffee and a chocolate chip muffin for Derek. She told herself she was just being nice because she knew how intense she got when it came to studying. He'd need the caffeine and carbs to keep up with her!

"Did you _really_ ask Sam about me?" she asked after taking a seat across from him. He had found a table near the stacks that was pretty quiet. Although they should get straight to studying, she couldn't help but ask. All she could think about was whether he had talked to Sam, his best friend, about her. What else could he have told Sam about her?

Derek stared at the food in front of him, tempted to touch it.

She nodded, letting him know it was for him.

"Yeah," he nodded after biting into the delicious muffin. "Why?"

"I just didn't think you cared about little ol' me so much. I'm kind of flattered." She teased, sticking her tongue out as she pulled her textbook out of her bag.

He rolled his eyes. "Yeah, well..." he scoffed at not having a good enough comeback, "Shut up," he finished.

Casey stifled a laugh and dropped the topic altogether.

They studied until dinner time.


	5. Chapter 5

**The Coffee Shop:  
** **Chapter 5**

Derek had already come in that particular Wednesday, so Casey wasn't on edge for the rest of her shift. Instead, she had gone back to studying; her textbook was hidden away behind the counter, with a highlighter in hand as she skimmed the text.

She was in the middle of a line when she heard the bell above the door jingle, letting her know she had a customer. She capped her highlighter quickly before looking up at her customer with a smile on her face, ready to assist. She was not, however, expecting to see this particular new face making a beeline for the front counter.

Sam Richards: Goalie for the Queens' hockey team…and Derek Venturi's best friend.

"Casey, right?" Sam asked when he reached her. He eyed her name tag before looking up at her with a bright smile. But it was all for show, he knew exactly who she was.

 _Wow_. Clearly, she had seen Sam before, but up close and in person… it was a little bit much. He was really attractive, and his eyes were really, _really_ pretty. But quickly she got a hold of herself.

"Uh, yeah, that's me." She tried her best to stay cheery while trying not to sound weirded out by the fact that Derek's best friend was in front of her for the first time... ever. There was nothing to be worried about, right? It's not like he was there to see her. He was probably just around and wanted coffee like anyone who came into the coffee shop!

"I'm Sam. Derek's friend," he supplied as if she had no clue.

She nodded, acknowledged him. She didn't know if she was supposed to actually speak to him. _He was Derek's best friend._ But he was also a customer...which was so much easier to deal with.

"What can I get for you Sam?" she asked politely like she was supposed to. Because that was her job...and she was not having an internal freak out. Nope. Not at all.

"Well, I gotta admit, I don't really drink coffee. So, what do you suggest?" he asked, his bright smile never fading.

Didn't he drink coffee? But he was at the coffee shop? That wasn't strange at all. Nope. "Well, you can pick a flavor first. Caramel, vanilla, mocha?" she listed off a few.

"I like caramel."

"Alright. What about my favorite? Caramel Latte? Warm, because it's pretty cold out there," she added.

"That sounds good. Give me a small. With _lots_ of whip cream." Sam decided.

"Coming right up," she smiled before she turned to start making his drink.

"You know... I really just came here to talk to you." Sam admitted behind her.

"Me?" Casey asked with a shaky voice before she turned halfway towards him. Her eyes were wide; she was not expecting him to say that.

"Yup."

"Oh god." She breathed out, turning back to the back counter as she made his drink. She didn't want Sam to see her cringe, and break down because of his confession. "What did Derek say?" she asked, trying to sound casual, but failing miserably.

"Nothing!" he fired back quickly. "Nothing _bad_ at least," he clarified quickly. "I'm just..." he sighed, "Well, to be honest, I'm not exactly sure how to go about this. I've never done this before..." Sam laughed sucking his bottom lip into his mouth, clearly uncomfortable.

"Done what?" Casey asked, bringing his drink over to the main counter before ringing Sam up easily.

"Casey... Derek's my _best_ friend. And I look out for him as much as I can. And, usually, he doesn't need me to. He had things handled! He's usually the one breaking hearts." Sam shrugged while pulling out his wallet to cover the latte. He pushed a crisp bill Casey's way.

Casey shivered at Sam's words. She assumed Derek was the type. Especially after he told her about all the girls he went through during his high school years. She knew, but still. It sucked.

"But, now I'm worried that you're going to break his heart." Sam spoke again, "I think I'm supposed to ask you not to hurt my best friend." He laughed at the words.

"What makes you so sure I will? I mean, he's got a rep, doesn't he? Shouldn't I be the worried one?" Casey countered before handing over his change. And it was true. She was worried about getting hurt by Derek. No matter how much she tried to stop herself, and to put up a defensive barrier, she just couldn't shake Derek. She couldn't stay away.

Sam chuckled. "You don't see it, do you?" he asked after stuffing the money into his pocket. He reached out to take a cautious sip of his sweet drink.

"Guess not," she huffed. She knew she was not being as nice as she should be to a customer. But most customers don't come in and accuse her of breaking someone's heart. Actually...none do! So there was no set protocol for this situation. You couldn't really blame her!

"Casey... Derek doesn't even _like_ coffee." Sam smirked.

Nope. No way could that possibly be true.

"That's impossible. He was a regular before I got here. Kendra's regular, but still!" Casey countered with a raised eyebrow. Checkpoint.

"He only drinks coffee when he's got a hangover. All the other times...that's just been to see you." Sam insisted.

"That's impossible," Casey decided, shaking her head. No way could that be true. She and Derek barely spoke for the first few days that he came into the coffee shop. She was the one who initiated the conversation about Marti after many visits!

"It's really not," Sam pushed the issue, "Just... make your intention with him clear. Okay? 'Cause I wouldn't even know how to deal with him all mopey and broken-hearted. Being the sappy lovesick fool, that's my job, not his." Sam chuckled before taking another sip. He seemed to have liked his choice

"Are you sure he even has a heart?" Casey teased with a small smile. She needed Sam on the same page as Derek. She didn't mean her comments to be hateful or anything. Just...teasing.

"Well, I didn't think he did! Until you came along. I couldn't understand it at all. There have been dozens of pretty girls in Derek's life... But, I guess its cause you don't take any of his shit. You're special or something." He laughed giving a pointed look.

"Maybe," Casey whispered while feeling a blush cover her face.

"Oh, and Case...don't use me to get him jealous. He's really _sensitive_ about that. There was a girl once...but bro code." Sam shook his head, pushing a memory away.

"I didn't mean it like that!" she corrected while hoping that she wasn't blushing too bad. Because wow, embarrassing much? "I just wanted to bring his ego down a little." She shrugged. And it was true, all of it.

"I know. But, like I said, he's really weird about stuff like that when it comes to me." Sam coughed awkwardly.

"Understood." She replied, begging for Sam to just end the conversation already!

"You know... you seem like a really cool girl Casey," Sam said after a while.

A slow smile crept across her lips. She was approved. Best friend approved! Was it official "Yeah? You too Sam," she replied. "Oh, and Sam..." she called out as he pulled away from the counter.

"Yeah?"

"What did you tell him? When he asked you about me, I mean." She blushed. She had to ask. It had been killing her.

"That you were the smartest girl in the class." Sam shrugged. "This really does taste amazing. Thanks," he finished before giving her a small wave and walking out.

Well, there was a lot to think about.

* * *

The next time Derek came into the coffee shop, Casey had a plan. A careful thought out plan that she had decided on after her conversation with Sam. An amazing plan.

"What about mixing it up today?" she asked with a sly smile as he approached the counter.

He eyed her for a second. "Mixing it up _how_?" he asked slowly and cautiously.

"How do you feel about _peppermint hot chocolate_?" she tested, purring the words out, really trying to sell it.

She didn't want to give Derek another large black coffee. Why would he even order it black if he hated coffee? He could ask for it with milk and sugar and it would taste a thousand times better. But no, he was stubborn and he always ordered the same thing. But Casey would try to change his mind.

"Well, I do love chocolate..." he supplied, still clearly weary.

"Cool," she smiled, turning around to pour him a cup. If he insisted on coming in every day, he was going to get a drink he actually liked, damnit!

"So, how's your day been Princess?" he asked as he waited at the counter.

"Princess?" she scoffed, like he had just insulted her. She had capped his drink, and pushed it towards him before ringing him up.

He pushed a few bills her way as per usual. "What? I've called you Princess before," he argued. "The name suits you." He added while hiding the laugh.

"I know but now..." She sighed. "Princes...The Prince. What is your deal with royalty Derek? I think you've seen too many Disney movies. Should I be concerned?" she teased.

He took a cautious sip of the hot drink before nodding in approval. "Hey, I have a little sister. She likes all that fairy tale shit! And she makes me watch it with her, and have tea parties and play dress up." He defended himself.

"Dress up? Please tell me that there pictures."

"You are an evil, _evil_ woman McDonald." He tsked before blowing onto the top of his drink.

"I thought I was Princess?" she teased, sticking her tongue out at him playfully.

"Only when I like you." He winked at her over his drink.

"Yeah, but you _always_ like me." She smiled bright, knowing it was true. She had come to terms with what Sam told her, and she had decided she liked it!

"Welp! Someone's getting a little smug, huh?"

"Maybe. Or maybe you've just rubbed off on me?" she asked while leaning onto her side of the counter.

"I can rub off on you in a few different ways if you'd like." He replied, sucking his bottom lip into his mouth, teeth biting down on it.

"See, now I'm not talking to you." She decided before popping back up into a normal standing position. She crossed her arms over her chest defensively.

"As if you could resist," he muttered into his drink.

Casey only blinked up at him, not saying a word.

"Come out with me tonight." He bargained, with a slow smile spreading across his lips. Tongue snaking up to chase away any remaining whip cream.

Casey only scolded.

"Come on. I'll even buy you a milkshake this time?" he added, "Or a slushie? I don't think they sell milkshakes at the movie theater. But, I'll buy you popcorn," he reasoned.

Casey tried her best not to seem fazed by the idea of going out with Derek again. This time it sounded like a date… A real proper date!

"No movies?" he asked, pouting dramatically due to her silence. "I just thought you'd want to see Oceans 8? The midnight premiere? I mean, I know its way passed your bedtime, but you've only been talking about it all week." He grinned, knowing that with that he had won.

A flicker of a smile tugged at Casey's lips which she couldn't control. He remembered. It wasn't hard, she had been talking about it all week, but still... he actually remembered!

Noticing her internal debate, knowing that he had won, Derek gave her a smug smile. "Alright, I'll pick you up later. We'll get food or whatever, if you want. Just text me. It doesn't involve _speaking_ to me," he teased. "And this, this is fucking awesome." He noted before giving her another head nod of approval for the new drink.

* * *

And that's how their friendship started.

For the next few weeks, they kind of _just_ hung out. It was innocent, and... nice. Sometimes they hung out at the coffee shop where Casey would make him different drinks every time in hopes to find his all-time favorite. (Spoiler alert: Derek seemed to favor a Skinny vanilla latte most days. Who would have thought?) Sometimes they'd hang out for lunch on campus, or in-between class breaks and practices, for hockey and dance respectively.

It was a nice couple of weeks, getting to know each other more, and fighting about pointless things was always amusing.

Hanging out with Derek was fun, and Casey had finally admitted it. She didn't even mind when Emily started teasing her about it or when she'd remind Casey of her initial reaction to Derek only weeks ago. But Casey just shook her head every time. She was starting to fall for Derek. More than the silly crush she thought she had on him initially. This was different, and it was scary.

* * *

 

Casey walked into her dorm room, expecting to find it empty because it was Wednesday night and Emily wasn't due back until nine because of class. But, the room wasn't vacant as she expected it to be.

She walked in to find Derek laying on his stomach while sprawled out across her bed with his limbs taking up its entirety. He was sleeping peacefully with her _Winnie The Pooh_ plushie tucked in the crook of one arm. She wanted to laugh so bad but she covered her mouth quickly. It wasn't the first time Derek had been in her dorm, but she had never found him there alone. And he looked just a little adorable cuddling Winnie the way that he was. She had to take a moment to compose herself.

She dropped her things onto her desk quietly and made her way over. She took a seat next to him on her small bed and pushed his hair away from his eyes gently. "Der," she called him softly. "Der," she tried again until he stirred a bit.

"Case," he mumbled half into her pillow, where he was surely drooling. "Where you been?" he rolled over onto his back and rubbed his eyes viciously. His voice was coated with the evidence of sleep, and the combination did a number of Casey's ears.

"Library," she whispered, fingers still brushing his hair because she figured she could. Like this, in the privacy of her dorm, while he was still half asleep, she could give in a little and bask in the simple pleasure of it.

"I've been looking all over for you. Your phone was going straight to voice mail," he explained.

"Yeah, I really needed to study, so I turned it off," she shrugged. Suddenly she felt bad. What did Derek need to talk to her about so badly? He looked sad, Casey wasn't used to seeing him like that.

"Oh..." he trailed off, blinking slowly before looking around her dim room. He licked his dry lips and looked up at her again. "I came looking for you. Emily said I could wait here, I hope that was alright."

"It's fine." She promised while trailing her hand down to his warm cheek. "What's wrong? Why were you looking for me?" she asked concerned.

"I... I needed to _talk,_ " he choked out, hating the word. "It's...family stuff. And Sam's been busy with his new girlfriend, and I just... I figured you'd understand better anyway." He shrugged.

"What's up?"

"Dad's..." he started, shaking his head, "Dad started dating again." He blurted out.

"Oh," Casey cringed.

"I mean, don't get me wrong, I knew. Every time he was working late, and dropping the kids off at Mom's. Missing my games and stuff... I knew. I just didn't believe it? But, he told me earlier and...I'm scared," he went on with a frown, "Not because of me. I'm pretty much grown up now, I can take it. Ed... I think he'll be alright for the most part. But Marti...she's had a hard childhood, nothing I could do could change that. But... but damnit, she doesn't _need_ this," he cursed before closing his eyes tight.

Casey winced, knowing exactly what he was feeling. He needed to be comforted. She turned her body and placed her back against the headboard, sitting down in the small empty space next to him. Her hands found his hair again, her fingers slowly curled around his brown locks.

"Give your dad some credit, Der. From what you've told me, he's a good dad, and deserves to be happy too," she whispered softly, smiling in hopes to brighten the situation.

Derek snuggled closer to Casey, but given that he was laying down and she was sitting up, he nuzzled his way into her side, resting his head against the side of her stomach. "Of course he does but… I just, I'm scared it's going to hurt them." He groaned.

"Edwin will be fine. And Marti...I'm sure your dad will explain it to her, you don't have to freak out about it. It'll be okay." She assured him, using her nails to scratch his scalp.

He closed his eyes under her touch. "Does your mom date?" he asked. He sounded calmer already, softer.

"Yeah...here and there. They've been divorced for a long time, longer than your parents I think," she stopped to crunch some numbers. "But it was never serious enough for her to bring a guy around us. She said she wouldn't unless she knew she was planning on marry the guy," Casey shrugged.

"I hope my dad keeps it away from them. At least until its serious, you know? I don't need Marti meeting multiple women."

"Oh come on, you really think there will be _that_ many?" Casey teased.

"Hey, my dad has charm. A weird, ditzy kind of charm, but charm nonetheless!" Derek fought.

Casey laughed, and a comfortable silence fell upon them. "You feeling any better?" she asked gently after a while.

"A little," he shrugged. "Case," he nearly purred while nudging her arm with his head like a kitty who wanted attention.

"Hmmm?" she hummed, looking down at him.

"I'm hungry," he complained, looking down at his stomach which growled on cue.

Casey rolled her eyes, thinking that he must have skipped dinner to look for her. He must have really been upset. Derek used food like medicine most of the time.

"Of course you are," she replied, rolling her eyes. "Come on, let's go get some dinner." She decided, reluctantly. She really didn't want to move, but she was starving too.

* * *

A few days later, Casey spotted Derek sitting on the stairs in front of the East building where her Micro-Economics class was held. She ran up behind him, excited to have the upper hand on him. She crouched behind him, putting them at the same height and leaned forward before wrapping her arms loosely around his neck like a monkey. She leaned in and spoke directly into his ear.

"Hey." She said way too loud.

Derek jumped so fast he nearly threw Casey off balance behind him. She quickly released her hold on him and fell backwards on her ass, in a fit of giggles, 'cause that reaction was just priceless.

Derek looked at her like she was crazy. But he shook his head and the look was replaced by something else. Something Casey wasn't used to seeing. _Happiness._

A real smile stretched across his lips, his teeth shining bright behind them, and whoa, since when did Derek have such straight teeth? _He should totally smile more often_ , Casey thought to herself, as she regained composure.

"What are you doing here? And why are you so happy?" she asked cautiously while narrowing her eyes at him. Because she had learned; Derek liked pranks. And he was really good at them as well. She had been on the receiving end on way too many of them in the short span of their friendship. So naturally, she assumed that this level of happiness could only be a result of some evil plan he had up his sleeve. So yeah, she was a bit terrified. Maybe she shouldn't have scared him like that? He was going to get her back for that, she thought.

"Guess what!" he asked, puncturing each word with equal excitement and enthusiasm.

"What?" she asked slowly, getting up from the steps, making her way down with Derek trailing behind her like a puppy.

He was literally bouncing up and down on his toes and it was really starting to worry Casey. How much coffee did he have? She didn't work that morning, so she wasn't sure of his caffeine intake. She had successfully gotten him off of coffee, at least off drinking it black.

"They're coming!" he blurted out finally.

"Who?" Casey asked, turning to face him as they walked to her next class; Derek always walked her to class. Casey didn't know if Derek ever made it to class on time, but she didn't complain about it, she liked the company. She couldn't help but think of how gentlemen-like it was.

"My dad! Ed and Smarti. They're coming." He repeated while still smiling like he had just won the jackpot.

Casey winced insistently. Because he was so happy about it, and it broke her heart because she knew that this was not the first time George had said that they were coming and didn't. Usually, Derek didn't really get his hopes up. But there seemed to be something different about this time. Because he was bouncing off the walls and it was cute. But still, she couldn't help but feel protective of him.

"Der," she sighed, warning him with a sad tone.

"No... no!" He groaned, throwing his head back, noticing her vibe. "They're coming this time. Dad feels guilty about not telling me he was dating again. So, they're really coming," he promised.

"Okay, hun. They're coming," she tried her best to smile for his sake. She reached up to rub his arm gently as they walked.

"They are," he nodded with a half-smile. His eyes glanced at her hand on his arm, but he didn't say anything. "So," he started, licking his lips slowly. "You want to...uh, meet them?" he asked as he stuffed his hand into his pocket as they fell into step with each other.

"Your family?" she asked while looking up at him confused.

He nodded slowly. "I mean, you wanted to meet Marti before. It's cool if you changed your mind but-"

She stopped him quickly. "Do _you_ want me to meet them?" she asked with a smile.

"Only if you-"

She cut him off again, not wanting to hear his excuse. "Derek!" she yelled, stopping their walk, "Yes or no."

"Yeah. They'd love you." He shrugged easily.

"Then I'll be there." She promised before reaching up to kiss him on the cheek. "You coming over tonight?" she asked, innocently.

Because their relationship, or lack thereof, was still innocent. And Casey was okay with it. So, Derek hadn't made a move to kiss her. That was fine. All fine. Casey wasn't itching to press herself against him, or anything. Nope. That was just due to all his backhanded, overly sexual comments that he made in passing. That was all. But, every time she was around him, she was reminded that she could barely remember the last time she had kissed a guy. Okay, that was a lie, it was in the summer. But it was the freezing cold winter now, so clearly, that felt like ages ago! And Casey couldn't find it in herself to be attracted to anyone besides Derek. No one was. So yeah, there was a lot of pent up sexual frustration.

But seriously, why hadn't Derek tried anything yet? It had been _months_ _ **,**_ and with how often they saw each other, nearly every day, it felt like much longer.

"Yeah, I'll be there," he replied with a single nod. He looked hypnotized, and Casey didn't know why. But she didn't have time to prod and pick at Derek's odd behavior.

"Okay, I'll see you later," she waved before entering Thomas Hall for her next class.

 


	6. Chapter 6

**The Coffee Shop:  
Chapter 6**

"Relax!" Emily reminded Casey for the umpteenth time that afternoon.

Casey stared into the mirror while contemplating changing her outfit for the third time that afternoon. There wasn't really much you could wear to look fashionable and normal at a hockey game. Finally, Casey settled for a simple outfit, jeans and a t-shirt paired with her Queens' hoodie.

She was debating if she should wear Derek's jersey. He didn't even know she owned one, but she did. Well, a standard Queens' jersey that it. She just stitched Venturi on the back by hand, just in case. But today wasn't the day, she decided. It was too bold to wear, especially on the same day that she was supposed to meet his family. That alone was too much for Casey.

She was nervous...it was nerve-wracking! She had met her boyfriend's parents in the past. But it usually went horribly wrong. Casey had a tendency to put her foot in her mouth. She'd get so nervous that her brain-to-mouth filter was practically non-existent. Naturally, it got her into a lot of trouble. So yeah she was nervous, terrified actually. Because Derek wasn't even her boyfriend, but she desperately wanted his family -one of the things that even got them to talk to each other civilly- to like her. It meant a lot.

And if they didn't... what if Marti hated her? It could get very, _very_ bad. And awkward. Situations like that usually were for Casey.

"I can't relax, Em" Casey whined while falling back onto her bed in a heap of frustration. "You don't understand. I'm meeting his family. His _sister_ Emily." Casey stressed the importance of it.

She hugged her Winnie the Pooh plushie to her chest and took a deep breath. It still smelled like Derek. He had a tendency of grabbing said bear whenever he was on Casey's bed, which was more often than not. However, it was always platonic! He was such a tease.

"That's like... everything in the world that matters to him. ALL AT ONCE!" Casey ranted on.

"Case..." Emily sighed, from her own bed that was opposite to Casey's. "He likes you. You know that! We all know that" Emily laughed. "So relax. Everything will be fine. He probably just wants to show you off." Emily reasoned like a normal person, which clearly Casey was not.

"I just hope she likes me," Casey groaned while turning onto her side. She was so tempted to pull her covers over her body and just fall asleep. Sleeping was a lot easier than getting up and out of her room and dealing with Derek and his family.

"You'll be fine. And hey! Maybe he actually makes a move tonight!" Emily chuckled.

"Yeah right!" Casey scoffed. Derek hadn't made a move when they were alone in her bed while watching TV. There was no way he was going to do it under these circumstances "With his family there? I doubt it." Casey frowned before sitting up from her bed. She dangled her feet over the edge of her bed as she prepared herself to get up and leave.

"Good luck," Emily sang with a smug smile.

"Thanks." Casey frowned as she grabbed her bag and finally heading out.

* * *

The plan was to meet up before the game, in front of the boys' locker room. After being formally introduced, they would get their seats and watch the game. Which, without Derek there as a buffer, would be challenging but Casey tried her best to not think about that. After the game, they were going out for dinner. Then it was over!

Knowing the plan, Casey slowly approached the locker rooms. She had snuck back there many times to see Derek before games in the past. It started when she realized how nervous and sick Derek got before games. She'd sneak into the locker room to help him recover and get ready for the game. She knew most of the team by that point.

This time it was different though because this time she was meeting Derek's family.

When she spotted them, Derek stood in front of the locker room in his full hockey gear, aside from his helmet. He was crouched down on his knees in front of Marti, having what seemed like a private (and very adorable) moment. Marti, true to Derek's word, wore what looked to be Derek's practice jersey. It went way past her knees, but she looked adorable. The entire scene looked like it was out of a movie! George and Edwin stood close by and watched the pair with soft smiles on their faces.

Casey felt bad interfering but she had no choice. Derek looked up for half a second and spotted her easily. She melted when she saw the smile he gave her. It was like she was the biggest present under the Christmas tree. It was adorable.

The entire Venturi clan looked up at her, noticing his distraction. All that attention made it very hard to run away. So she took a deep breath, put on a brave smile, and gave them all a small wave.

"Hey," she squeaked despite her attempts to stay calm. It was just Derek's family... she could handle it.

"Guys," Derek started, still not looking away from her. "This is Casey." He introduced.

And it was a bit of a letdown. She was itching to know how he'd introduce her. As his friend, as his girlfriend? But apparently, all she was… was Casey. Plain and simple.

They replied in a choir of "Hi" and "Hey", introducing themselves one by one, but Casey already knew who they were.

"Nice to meet you all. Derek's told me a lot," she replied, not sure who exactly to look at. So she gradually made eye contact with everyone before settling on Derek. Because Derek was safe.

Derek, who was still crouched down for Marti's benefit, pulled the smaller girl closer to him before he started to explain."Smarti, this is Casey. The one I told you about. From the coffee shop…with the muffins and the hot chocolate? She takes care of me sometimes." He explained. He leaned forward and whispered against Marti's ear, pretending to whisper, "And I think I like her. A lot." He spoke, loud enough for everyone to hear.

Casey heard George and Edwin stifle a laugh beside the pair. All she could do was flush pink. She could never get used to the idea of Derek liking her that way. But it was always nice to hear.

Marti stared Casey down for a while, with narrow eyes, trying her best to intimate Casey. Everyone stood quiet, waiting for Marti's reaction.

After a few seconds, Marti nodded. She pulled out of Derek's grasp and walked up to Casey while looking up at her carefully. She pulled her arms over her chest. But even so, she looked intimidating. If it wasn't for the fact that she was giving Casey this look, Casey would be cooing as too how cute and protective Marti was of Derek. But Casey was on the receiving end of this glare, and it was very uncomfortable.

"Are you nice to Smerek?" she asked bluntly.

Casey's knew it was just a 10 year old. But still, she wanted to make a good impression. If she said yes...well, that would be a lie. Sure, she was nice to him sometimes. But more often than not Casey and Derek were bickering, back and forth while making comments that they probably shouldn't. But it was always in good clean fun. They hadn't really had a fight yet. Not a real one, but still Casey couldn't say yes. She couldn't lie to Marti. But she was scared that if she said no, Marti was going to somehow pounce on Casey like a Chihuahua.

Nervously, Casey spoke. "When he's nice to me," she replied while hoping that was good enough answer.

Marti thought about it for a moment. You could see the answer ping-pong back and forth in her head. Everyone held their breath waiting. "I think I like you," Marti decided. She slipped her hand into Casey's hand in a trusting way.

Casey let out the breath she didn't know she was holding.

Derek jumped to his feet, but for a different reason. "Sorry, she-" Derek started explaining what had just happened.

"It's fine." Casey cut him off quickly. She had gotten Marti's approve, that's all she needed.

That's when George cut in. "Come on, Marti. Let's go get our seats. You can talk to Casey inside, Okay?" George asked while reaching a hand out for Marti to grab onto. He must have sensed Casey's nervousness, or he really did want to get to his seat.

Reluctantly and with a pout Marti let go of Casey's hand, and she left with George and Edwin after wishing Derek good luck.

"I'll see you later," he smiled. Derek leaned over to ruffle Marti's hair. Then he gave Ed and George a manly head nod, such guys!

When they were down the hall and out of sight, Derek reached out and pulled Casey closer to him with a devious smirk.

"What?" She asked while trying not to react to the way he gripped her waist so possessively. It started to crush her hips since she was pressed against his geared up body. It wasn't exactly pleasant, but she made no move to pull away. Maybe Emily was right. Maybe Derek was going to make a move...

"Nothing," he replied with a goofy grin.

Casey rolled her eyes. She then bit her lip to stop herself from squealing. He was so happy that his family was there. She wished that they could be at all of his games. Derek had an ego but the crowd chanting his name wasn't enough. He needed familiar faces, and Casey's wasn't enough sometimes. (Not like he could ever actually find her, she always sat in different places. It was the biggest game of hide and seek ever).

Casey wound her arms around his neck, letting her fingers dip into his hair. She knew in a matter of minutes that he'd be drenched in sweat with his hair sticking to his face. She liked the way his hair felt against her fingertips. Their foreheads were bowed together. Casey was still leaning against his body while on her tippy toes (she tried to keep her balance).

She thought for a second, how perfect they probably looked, entangled together in their own little world.

Derek was the one to break first. He brushed his nose against her cheek, and down her jaw. She held her breath and waited. And it paid off. Suddenly he pressed his mouth against just the corner of her mouth. It was almost a kiss, his lips were on hers. But not enough, Casey needed more. And he did too. He pulled away, bringing one hand up to her face, tilting her face just a little bit…

That's when Sam's voice came booming, echoing in the hallway, interrupting them. "Dude, come on! Coach is waiting," he yelled, at Derek.

Derek pulled away from Casey's mouth but still held her close. "I'll be right in," Derek replied, not bothering to look at Sam. His eyes were locked on Casey's.

"Sorry Case!" Sam laughed before going inside again.

Casey couldn't even process the embarrassment at that moment. She was too disappointed to worry about what Sam had seen. "You should probably go," Casey sighed before dropping her hands from his neck.

The moment had passed and there were only a few minutes till game time. And she knew that right before a game the team would all huddle in a circle, awaiting the coach's pre-game speech. Derek couldn't miss it.

"Yeah," he groaned, dropping his hold on her as well.

"Kick ass," she smiled before stepping away from him, giving him enough space to move.

"I'll try. Actually cheer for me this time, Princes," he winked, teasing her as he usually did, claiming she only cheered for Sam. And with that he disappeared into the locker room.

* * *

After watching Derek disappear into the locker room, Casey took a moment to regain herself. She was going to sit with Derek's family for an entire hockey game after what had just, _well, almost_ happened. How was she supposed to concentrate on hockey when all she could think about was his mouth?

Eventually, she shook it off as best she could and she made her way inside. They got front row seats this time. Players had the best seats to give to their families. Most of the time, Casey didn't bother in sitting up front. She didn't like being so close and seeing everyone gets slammed into the boards. But she had no choice this time. She was with Derek's family and they were going to want to be as close as possible.

She spotted them easily to the left of Queens' bench, right next to where the team sat. Casey sat in the empty space between Marti and Ed and crossed her fingers that the night went okay.  
 **  
**"So, Casey," Edwin started after silence had fallen upon them.

"Yeah?" she asked, turning to look at Edwin.

"What are your intentions with my brother?"

Casey could not resist a laugh to that one. What was it with everyone asking her about her intentions with Derek?! He had one hell of a protective inner circle! For a second she wished Emily, her closest friend at Queens, would try that on Derek, just to see what he'd say.

"Really? You're pulling that line?" Casey finally asked when the laughter had died down.

"It's a good line!" Ed argued, throwing his hands up in a defensive manner.

"Wouldn't it be more suitable when it's Marti's boyfriend?" She countered.

"Marti's never going to have a boyfriend." Edwin fired back quickly.

"And why is that?"

"Derek will kill a guy before he got a chance to ask her out."

"You know, you're a good wingman Ed."

"Why do you say that?"

"You're getting him major brownie points."

"The little sister thing really works, huh?" Ed laughed, clearly disbelief of such a myth.

"It does wonders! I started talking to him after I saw him and Marti on FaceTime. Heart...melted!" Casey admitted.

"So, if I played the little sister card..." he trailed off with an idea in mind.

"It might just work," Casey winked, nudging Edwin with her shoulder. "Got someone in mind?"

"Casey, Casey, Casey! Come on, I'm a businessman! I have many girls in mind! I'm just weighing my best options," he joked.

"Oh yeah?" Casey chuckled beside him.

"Guys! Game's starting!" Marti scolded the pair before turning her attention back onto the ice where the teams where filling the ice.

Casey took a deep breath like she always did before a game.

And just like that, the puck was dropped and the players went mad.

Casey had watched hockey for years. She knew it was an aggressive sport. She thought it was too violent when she was younger, and she stood by that, but she had gotten used to it. This particular game however...it was intense. Extremely physical. More aggressive than any of Derek's other games she had seen, and she had watched quite a few! She knew the team they were playing against. The Owls were their long-time rivals. But this game had to be one of the worst Casey had seen! The number of times that Derek got slammed into the boards was ridiculous. Especially when he got slammed near them. Casey felt the air escape her each time it happened like she was the one getting hit. He was going to hurt in the morning.

Casey had seen Derek sporting a few hockey-related bruises often with pride. They were usually just on his arms since she hadn't seen much of Derek's naked skin, sadly. But she knew he groaned in pain because his back and shoulders hurt. It usually depended on how rough the game was. He tried his best to keep quiet about it but Casey knew it hurt. The entire crowd knew it hurt every time a player got slammed. That's why they booed every time!

Besides the slamming into the boards, there was also a bunch of small fights between the players that broke out periodically. But still, it happened way too often. The refs had to cut in a few times. Derek was involved more often than not.

After fifteen minutes into the first period, Casey knew she was going to owe Derek a full body massage. He was definitely going to need it after that hit. He was going to need it if he kept playing that way.

Casey was biting her nails the entire time.

"It's okay Casey. He's okay." Marti promised while squeezing Casey's cold hand.

"I know," Casey tried her best to smile. A 10-year-old was calmer than she was. That's was bad.

Actually...Marti wasn't that calm. She was ecstatic. She didn't sit down the entire time. She was on her feet, stomping as much as her small body allowed her to as she clapped and yelled to her heart's content. She screamed Derek's name and booed at all the appropriate times.

At the end of the first period, the buzzer rang and Casey sighed with relief. Derek would finally get a break, so she could relax. Or so she thought. The second the buzzer went off, Marti pulled on her hand before leading them towards the players' bench where Derek stood with his teammates.

Before Casey could ask what they were doing, Marti was knocking on the glass that separates them, gaining Derek's attention.

He whipped around quickly with a grin before placing his now bare hand against the glass between them. Marti giggled and placed her hand against his. "We always do this," Marti explained their little tradition to Casey, who idly stood by.

"Try it," Marti suggested, dropping her hand from the glass and motioning for Casey to do it.

Derek looked up at Casey as he waited. Casey brought her palm up against the glass, higher than where Marti had hers. Derek's smile widened before he brought his hand up to mirror hers.

"Be careful," she mouthed, hoping it was clear enough for him to understand.

He nodded, seeming to understand her. He gave them a half wave, and he gave Casey a flirty wink before following his team back to the locker room for the first intermission.

* * *

The rest of the game went by in a similar manner. Bonding with Derek's family was easier than she expected. They were all too busy cheering for him to worry about small talk.

Derek was in the penalty box once in the second period, which Casey was almost thankful for. He needed to relax and calm down! She watched him instead of the game during the two-minute penalty. He was busy laughing the entire time and Casey didn't know why.

But she did know why he was playing so much harder, so different than usual. He was showing off for his family. But the thing is, Derek's an amazing hockey player normally, they knew that! He didn't have to change anything. But she understood why he was doing it.

It was close. But in the end, they won 3-2. Derek made the second goal with 30 seconds to spare in the second period. Yeah, it was a really, yet intense, good game.

* * *

After the game, they piled into George's car before they drove the three miles to "the best diner around!" Marti, Derek, and Casey took the back seat while Edwin sat shotgun as George drove.

Marti spent the entire ride over ranting to Casey about the Mac and Cheese that was to die for! But to tell you the truth, Casey wasn't very hungry.

She was more than content to sit in the car, curled into Derek who had one arm slung around her middle and his free hand playing with her fingertips

Casey looked up from her spot on his shoulder. "You played hard today," Casey noted, whispering low enough for only Derek to hear. They were lost in their private little bubble.

"Yeah, I know." He replied while looking down at her.

"No Derek... You played _too_ hard." She stressed with a frown.

"Come on Case," he sighed, nudging her chin with his finger. "It wasn't that bad." He gave her a soft smile.

"No. You took some bad hits tonight."

"I always take bad hits." He reasoned, which was true. But it's never _that_ bad.

"Yeah, but not like tonight. Derek, you don't need to prove-"

He cut her off, not wanting to hear the end of that sentence. "I'll be fine," he whispered, squeezing her hand to reassure her.

"You sure?"

"I was playing hard, it happens." He shrugged, clearly not realizing why it was a big deal.

"Does it hurt?" she asked after a while. She was gently tracing invisible patterns on the palm of his hand.

"Why? You gonna make it better?" he teased.

"That was kind of where I was going with that, yeah." She countered with a straight face, knowing what it would do to him.

Derek didn't say anything for a moment. "You can rub me down tomorrow and check for bruises," he murmured before pressing his lips against her ear.

The thought of it made Casey shiver. "Is that a promise?" she asked.

He didn't reply but raised an eyebrow suggestively.

* * *

Dinner flew by quickly. Faster than Casey expected. The clan huddled into a booth in the back and ordered a ton of food. Derek made Casey try his greasy, disgusting looking roast beef sandwich. But it was amazing in the end. Marti orders her favorite 3-cheese layered Mac and Cheese. She, too, made Casey taste it. And yes, it was as amazing as Marti raved.

Casey felt so comforted, surrounded by the feeling of home. The Venturi's really did make her feel like she was part of them. George was such a dad, making embarrassing and not very funny jokes at all the times before telling Casey embarrassing stories of Derek and how much trouble he used to get it. Marti shared the story behind Smarti/Smerek and how those names were exclusive, and no one else was allowed to use them. Even Ed started making jokes at her expense by the end of the night.

She felt like she had won like they had officially accepted her…like she had passed the test.

After dinner, George drove them back to the hockey rink so Derek could pick up The Prince. Casey promised Marti that she'd take good care of Derek, and that next time, if they had time, she'd take her out for ice cream. With those promises, Marti let Derek and Casey leave hand and hand.

* * *

"You know, I think she likes you," Derek spoke when they pulled up to Casey's dorm room building.

"Marti?" Casey asked, her voice spiking up with excitement.

He nodded. "She doesn't like girls I introduce her to very often." He shrugged.

"Do you introduce her to a lot of girls?" Casey worriedly asked.

"No! I think she's only meet like two of my girlfriends before." He clarified before she could get a chance to freak out.

Casey stared at him for a moment. Was she a girlfriend? Is that why he wanted them to meet her? Had she missed the memo? She was glad to be, but she just needed confirmation…clarity!

"I didn't mean..." Derek started, panicked that she was going to freak out. "You're... different." He shrugged. "I know you're not my girlfriend. We're... nothing," he mumbled while trying his best not to sound bitter about it. "But, I don't know, we talk about family and home, and it just, it felt _normal_ bringing you around them. Please don't freak out."

"Okay," it was all she managed to say.

"Okay. Cool." He breathed out, nodding along.

"Yeah," she sighed before reaching her hand out to open the car door, but she suddenly stopped. "Actually, no!" She fired back before turning back towards him.

"No?" he asked, completely confused with her outburst.

"Why would you say we're _nothing_? We're not nothing, Derek. Don't you dare say that. We're something, you know that" she yelled with anger welling up inside her fast.

"Something?" he asked.

"Yes!"

"Something like...?"

"I don't know! I don't understand you, Derek. Why haven't you made a move? Why haven't you kissed me? Why aren't we officially dating? Why didn't you introduce me as your girlfriend tonight?!"

"Casey... I'm not used to this. I'm never _this_ into a girl. Never!" he stressed. "So I don't know how to deal with it. But what I do know is that you're a princess, and you like cheesy horrible romance type of things. So, I was waiting until I could pull one of those fairy tale kinds of moves." He admitted before running his fingers through his hair in a frustrated way.

"You were waiting for the right time?" she asked softly, taken back by the confession.

"Well, yeah. I didn't want to screw it up before it even started." He shrugged.

"So, you've actually wanted to kiss me?" she smiled.

"Well, obviously! But today, before the game...fucking Sam!" Derek cursed.

Casey stared at him for a second. That's all it took one second to think, _fuck it_! She went for it.

She practically jumped over the center console in The Prince to reach him. Her hands reached out first, pulling on Derek's shoulders, bringing him closer to her. It was rushed and hurried but finally, their lips were pressed together.

Derek didn't move for a second. It probably took him some time to recover over the surprise of Casey literally jumping him. But soon his hands found her body, and he couldn't decide where he wanted to touch first. He touches her hair, and her neck, down her sides, her hips before wrapping his hands around her back and trailing them down to her ass. He pulled her over the center console and into his lap completely. She was trapped between the steering wheel and Derek's body.

Casey squealed after feeling him pick her up and physically move her. And there was just something about that that was so attractive! She knew Derek was hurting after taking those hits! And she knew he was in the gym as much as she was in the library, but feeling it was something completely different. It made a tingle shoot straight down her body. She shivered against his body. It was so much nicer now that he wasn't in his gear like before.

The kiss was filthy. Nothing sweet or innocent about it but Casey didn't care. It had an entire semester of pent-up frustration into it, and she was going to let it out somehow. She couldn't resist pulling on his still damp hair.

"Case," Derek hissed when she nibbled on his bottom lip, tugging at it playfully.

And just like that, she froze. She pulled away from Derek instantly. But given her current position, when she pulled back with that much force, she pressed back into the horn on the steering wheel, which honked loud around them, startling her even more. The whole thing was beyond embarrassing. How did such a perfect moment get turned into something so bad?

How? Well, because she was freaking out. Of course, she was. Because this wasn't something she did. It wasn't her. She was a good girl, a traditionalist. But there she was breaking pretty much all of her rules, and what killed her was that this was probably normal for Derek. He used to girls throwing themselves at him. He was a playboy. He had a past with a long list of names. And now she was just another girl on it.

"Case?" He asked again, softer this time. It was cautious, as if not to scare a wounded animal. "I didn't… I'm sorry." he cringed.

"No, no. It's… that was all me." She explained, breathing out.

And then it was awkward. Because she was still straddling his lap, and wow! What did she just do? Sure, he may have been a playboy. But he had proven himself enough throughout the semester, she thought. His family and friends have made it clear that she's different to him. That he likes her, a lot. So she decided she was going to believe him. She would push away her negative thoughts and trust him. And it could end very badly, but it was worth a shot, she decided.

"You're just so frustrating!" she admitted after a while. "You're so cute! And then you pull the adorable card with Marti. And amazing on the ice, and you make all these comments and it's ugh…it's frustrating!" she defended her actions while whacking him against his chest a few times to stress her point.

Derek stared at her for a second, amused. He brought his hands back to her hips affectionately. His tongue swiped out to lick his lips, hypnotizing Casey. "You think I'm cute?" he asked while smirking.

"That's all you got?" she groaned yet refusing to touch him. Not any more than necessary given their current situation.

"You know," he hummed, sounding breathless as he leaned forward, making her lean against the steering wheel again. "You're a strong, independent woman. You could have done it yourself." He spoke against her cheek. His breath warm against her skin, making her hum all over. Her eyes were fluttering closed.

"Cleary." She huffed, trying to keep her voice steady. She crossed her arms over her chest, restraining herself not to cave in as she tried her best to look mad and annoyed and most of all unaffected by him. "I just did."

"And now that you did…" he trailed off, running his fingertips up her thighs at tantalizingly slow pace, "I kinda want you... bad." He pulled back, barely brushing his lips against her, before turning to lean into her left ear. "Just so you know." He added.

Casey could not contain the moan that escaped her lips. He was good. He was really good. And that was the scary thing. Yes, she knew. She could _feel_ how much he wanted her underneath her.

Derek's palms cupped her ass, sliding her down so she was flush against his chest with no space between them. This forced her knees to dig into the seat. His mouth continued to work bruises against her skin, but it wasn't enough. Casey grabbed his face before slamming her mouth back onto his. Because that was what she needed. Derek was on board.

"Case," Derek called after a while, talking against her mouth.

"Hmmm?" she hummed, finally pulling away.

"That was one hell of a first kiss," he teased before kissing her cheek and leaning his head against the headrest as he tried to catch his breath.

"I like to make an impression," she replied with a small smile.

Derek didn't reply. He just kept that dopy, victorious smile across his features.

Although Casey was thrilled to finally be this close to Derek like that, she knew she had to get up. They were in his car…parked in front of her dorm building. Campus security did patrols at night, and she did not want to get caught in such a compromising position!

"I should probably…" she blushed while looking down at their bodies.

"Oh. Yeah…" he groaned, not sounding very happy about it.

Casey did her best to crawl back into the passenger side seat without looking too klutzy. She was prone to embarrassing situations, which would happen after all of that.

"You know…" Derek spoke after a while, "you could have just gotten out using the door," he teased before pointing at the driver side door.

"You could've told me that!" she groaned while running her hands over her flushed red face.

"I liked the view better," he winked.

"Goodnight Derek!" she replied as she reached for the door handle for the second time.

But he stopped her this time. "Hey…"

"Yeah?" she asked.

"Tell me we're something." He spoke softly with his head resting against his seat. His eyes were begging her silently.

_Something_. Like, his girlfriend? She smiled at the idea. She leaned over the center console again, but not like before. She didn't climb over, she simply leaned in. "We're something." She promised before pressing her lips against his one more time.

"Like… my girlfriend?" he asked, slipping an arm around her waist, holding her there as he waited for an answer.

" _This_ was the epic moment you were waiting for?" she scoffed, laughing.

"Yeah. It was pretty close to epic," he countered.

Casey rolled her eyes, but she didn't fight him on it. "Like your girlfriend," she confirmed. She added another peak on his lips before pulling away, for good this time.

"I'll see you tomorrow?" he asked, his voice hazy like he was high off of her.

"I thought you were going to sleep all day?" Casey teased. He did say that he was exhausted after that game and all the festivities with his family and that all he wanted to do for the rest of the weekend was sleep. Casey hadn't said anything about it, but she was kind of bummed that she was being excluded from his entire weekend.

"Yeah, I never said where. And we both know your bed is softer." He countered.

Casey rolled her eyes once more. "You just like cuddling with Pooh."

"Or, maybe I just want my rub down that you promised. And a repeat of whatever the hell just happened." He replied with a lazy grin.

He was smiling a lot more now. And Casey loved it.

"Goodnight!" she tried again before finally getting out of the car. She wasn't sure how steady her legs were, but she somehow made it inside her dorm room while knowing his eyes were on her body.

It was perfect.

 


	7. Chapter 7

**The Coffee Shop:  
Chapter 7**

Casey woke up the following morning, a bit too early for her taste, due to her cell phone that was vibrating under her pillows. At first, she dismissed it (thinking it was just a text or an email notification) and had convinced herself that it was nothing and that it could wait. But as the buzz continued, it left her no choice…she had to wake up to answer the damn device.

Blindly she pulled her phone out from underneath her pillow. Her sleepy eyes refused to open yet she fought against the sleepy urge and opened her eyes to the bright morning glow that flooded her dorm room. Her eyes burned, making her squint as she tried to stare at the phone in her hand.

After a while, she discovered it was actually a call... from Derek. Normally she would have answered in a heartbeat! She loved talking to Derek, but at seven am she much rather just go back to sleep. But her phone kept vibrating in her palm, so she turned over onto her back, closed her strained eyes once more before answering the call.

"Wha-" was all she managed to grumble into the phone before he interrupted her on the other side of the line.

"Open your door," Derek demanded in a very deep, sleepy voice (which should be illegal).

"What?" she asked again while rubbing her eyes some more. She looked around her dorm room and stared at her door for a second. She was trying to wake up enough to understand what was going on.

"I'm at your door. Open up," he groaned while sounding impatient on the line before it cut off altogether.

Casey took a few minutes to gather herself. She dropped her phone somewhere into her pile of blankets and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, enough to see at least be semi-decent. With a heavy sigh, she pulled her heavy and very warm comforter off her body and threw her feet off the side of her bed. She tested her weight on her feet before standing up on wobbly legs. She was still convinced that she was dreaming.

_Why was Derek even up this early_ , she asked herself.

She made her way towards her dorm door quietly, without waking up Emily (who was buried under her own pile of blankets). She opened her door hesitantly only to reveal a very sleepy and grumpy looking Derek on the other side.

"Wha-" she tried asking, but he was already pushing himself into her room. He kicked his shoes off and buried himself under her comforter before she could even move an inch.

"Sleep now." He mumbled into her pillow while holding up the blankets for her to scoot under.

Confused, she shook her head and didn't argue. She was tired and he was being weird. None of it mattered at seven am.

Numbly she closed the door behind her and made her way back to the warmth of her bed and into his waiting arms.

"Der-" she tried reasoning with him just once.

"Sleep," He grunted before throwing an arm over her stomach. He pulled her into his side before he pair dozed off again, in her warm twin sized bed without a single worry.

* * *

The second time Casey woke up that morning it was to Emily's voice instead. She seemed to be grumbling from the opposite side of the room.

"Huh?" Casey mumbled before looking at Emily with sleep-laden eyes. She blinked slowly as her consciousness woke up.

"Casey! A little warning would be nice!" Emily groaned as she rolled her eyes. She made her way around their small dorm room. She was already dressed and ready to head out with her bag packed with the essentials (like her computer and books). Casey couldn't understand where she was going so early on a Saturday morning. But then again, nothing was making sense that particular morning, so she didn't ask.

"Warning?" Casey asked Emily confused. All she could concentrate on was how comfortable she felt in her spot under the comforter-burrito she was seemingly wrapped in, with Derek's warm body pulsing against her.

"A warning that there's _a certain hockey player_ is in the room!" Emily replied. "I'm all for Dasey, but I don't need to be in the room when **that**!" Emily stopped to wag her finger at the direction of Casey's bed. "Is happening, Case!" Emily finished while fighting off a laugh because it was kind of funny after all.

"We're just _sleeping_ Em," Casey promised, rolling her eyes because her roommate was beyond dramatic. They had barely just kissed. Sure, snuggling was nice, but there was nothing to worry about! Yet.

"Sure," Emily teased, throwing her book bag over her shoulder. "I'll be back around lunchtime." Emily winked as she headed for the exit before Casey could fathom words to replay.

"I thought she'd never leave," Derek's raspy voice whispered into Casey's ear. The sound of his voice and the heat of his breathe against her skin made goosebumps spread across her skin like wildfire.

Her eyes fluttered closed once more. She took a deep breath as she tried her best to contain herself. "Go back to sleep." She finally replied to the not-so-sleepy boy next to her.

He tightened his arm around her middle, pulling her closer to him. "Nah," he decided with a shake of his head. "I think it's about time I get that rub down I was promised," he snickered. She could feel the smirk against his lips as they were pressed against the back of her neck.

She pretended to think about it for a second. "But what do I get in return?" she asked before she turned onto her side to face him.

He looked, well, beautiful. And she wasn't expecting that. His eyes were still slick with sleep. His cheeks were a bit pink, probably from the heat within their little cocoon of comfort. His jaw had the slightest bit of scruff powdered across it, tempting Casey's fingertips. And she couldn't resist. Why should she?

She traced his jawline with the tip of her index finger, ghosting it up and down his cheek. She enjoyed the contrast of his silky soft skin versus the prickly patches of fuzz.

His sleepy eyes closed as she touched him like she was hypnotizing him with her touch, easing him back to sleep.

She leaned forward and gently pressed a kiss to his cheek, then to his closed eyelids.

She smiled as she pulled back to look at him. She felt his arm (the one draped across her middle) tighten its hold on her. Her fingers reached up and smoothed out his eyebrows before she reached down to brush over his disgustingly perfect eyelashes.

"Der," she cooed after a while, as her hand rested on his cheek. Her thumb continued to brush back and forth across his features.

"Hmm" he hummed, half into the pillow.

"Backrub?" she chuckled, offering it one more time before she decided to go back to sleep herself.

His eyes shot open instantly, it almost scared her to see the way his face completely changed. From innocent and vulnerable to the usual confident obnoxious Derek she was used to.

"Backrub!" he declared.

Casey rolled her eyes but obliged. She gave him enough space to roll onto his stomach. In such a small bed it was hard to accommodate the two of them, but they made it work. After he was properly situated, Casey got up on her knees, swinging one onto his other side, and straddling his lower back. The blankets fell off of her body, leaving the pair exposed to the cooler air in the room, but Derek didn't seem to mind. He easily pulled off his red Queens hoodie, exposing his bare back to Casey.

She didn't say a word at first. Her hands just gravitated towards his skin. She yearned to touch him, she had to. It was like an instinct. She didn't do much rubbing though. Her fingers simply touched his skin, feeling the way his muscles twitched under her touch and what areas were tenser than others. She touched his old fading tan lines (which seemed to survive well into the winter), and over a few scattered moles and beauty marks that laid across his skin. She wanted to memorize his skin and scatter kisses all over it. But there would be time for that later, she thought, trying not to get ahead of herself.

"Where does it hurt?" she asked him quietly. It was almost as if the moment was too intimate to be interrupted with words.

"Everywhere," he replied.

And with that, she got to work. She used her fingers to knead his muscles, hoping that she was doing it right. It was a bit awkward to stare at her hands and have no idea what to do with them. She never really gave anyone a massage before. She pressed her palms into his back while hoping that the pressure was the right amount, and in the right place. And her fingers pressed into him like a piano, she bit her lip to stop herself from laughing at the thought. And at some point, she pressed her fingers into his side, and Derek erupted in a fit of giggles. Clearly, someone was ticklish.

"You're horrible at this," he chuckled after a while.

Outraged with the insult, she slapped his back with her palms. She hoped it stung him as much as it had hurt her. "I do not!" she argued, knowing fully well that she did.

"Come on," he smiled, "Get up. Let me show you how it's done." He teased.

And although she did want to fight him on that, having Derek's hands on her bare skin was something she couldn't deny. So, with a bit repositioning, they switched it pained her to say it, but Derek was right. His hands were like magic and she never wanted to move.

* * *

You'd think something would have changed after Casey meet and charmed Derek's family. But nope. Nothing. Nothing big in the least.

Derek and Casey continued how they were. They would hang out, make heart eyes at each other, or at least that's what Casey hoped were heart eyes they shared, and…that was it.

Between work and school, dance and Der-ek (as Casey realized she tended to yell his name) the semester flew by her. Exams were nearly over, and it was time to go home.

"So," Derek nudged Casey with his shoulder while smiling brightly. "Excited to go home?" he asked after pulling on his hockey skates. They were finally getting around to playing some hockey together like Casey promised him months ago.

To be honest Casey was dreading the idea of going home. It was nearing the end of the semester and that meant going back to Toronto where she wouldn't see Derek for a few weeks of her winter break.

"I miss Lizzie and mom. And I've already made plans to catch up with my old high school friends. But... it'll be _weird_." She sighed with a shrug before looking down at her own hockey skates.

"Yeah?" he asked confused.

"Yeah. But it'll probably be a lot more relaxing without having _you_ around to drive me crazy all the time," she laughed.

"Shut up McDonald, you'll totally miss me!"

"If you're lucky," she teased while knowing that it was an inside joke between them.

"I'm always lucky," he supplied while smiling softly before he gently kissed her temple.

"Sure," she replied. "But you'll be texting me nonstop! I bet you'll be begging to come to Toronto just to see me," she replied, playfully sticking her tongue out.

She was secretly hoping he could come to visit her. An entire winter break without Derek was insane. She saw him on an almost-daily basis now, how was she supposed to just stop cold turkey? She knew they would see each other. It would just be hard. She didn't have a car, and The Prince wasn't exactly reliable for long distance. It would be hard, but it would work, she knew it would.

"You might be right," he sighed, rubbing at his tired eyes.

"What's wrong?" she asked after noticing his change in tone.

"I don't want to go home?" he asked, more then said.

"Why not? I thought you missed Marti and even Ed!" she asked yet she was confused.

"Yeah but...my dad. Remember I told you about him dating again?" Derek frowned; clearly, he hadn't come to terms with the idea.

"Oh," she whispered, suddenly understanding his dilemma.

"Yeah..." he groaned.

"It'll be okay," she promised him.

"I'm just surprised the whole 'I'm a single father' isn't driving women away! It usually does." He argued before looking up at her.

"Hey..." Casey started before reaching out to cover his hands with her smaller ones. "It'll be fine. I doubt it's anything serious. He's just dating. Don't freak out yet, okay?" Casey offered with a soft smile.

He stared back at her for a while before nodding. "Yeah, you're right," he replied before smiling back because hers was just infectious.

"Good. Now that that's out of the way, let me teach how to _really_ play hockey!" she yelled before stepping onto the ice with ease. It was about time she made good on her promise.

It had been a while since she had been on the ice herself, but the blades of her skates against the ice felt familiar. The rink was in no way smooth. Hockey practice had just ended; the team had roughed up the ice during their drills. But Casey didn't mind.

After a few strides, she found her rhythm once more. She skated alone along the perimeter of the rink. The simple task had her remembering how it felt when she did figure-skated. She felt Derek's eyes on her as she moved, which only made her want to do more. She did lazy figure 8's and a few small jumps until she was satisfied.

"You gonna skate with me?" she asked as she made her way towards him.

"Not like that," he scoffed, pointing at her and what she had just done. "I thought you wanted to 'teach' me hockey?" he asked yet he seemed amused at the thought.

"And I will. But, I've seen you play. And all you need to learn is how to move better." She countered before she crossed her arms over her chest with a smug smile.

"Case, I learned how to skate when I was like five. I think I have it down." He argued as he skated halfway towards her until they met in the middle of the hockey rink.

She circled around him for a moment with a hand on her chin, as if she was inspecting him, "Maybe…" she dragged out, as her mind wasn't made up about it.

Suddenly she skated far away from him before looping around and skating directly towards him. It looked like she was going to crash into him, but at the very last second, as Derek moved to put his arms up to catch her, she came to a full hockey stop inches away from Derek's body, spraying him with bits of ice that were scratched off the surface due to her skates.

"Maybe so. But the more you learn how to glide, not just skate, you guys… when you play you don't care if you slam into another player. Hell, you live for it. But, if you knew how to avoid the other player…" she explained while skating around him lazily with a few simple strides. "If you knew how to confuse him, manipulate him into thinking you're going one direction, but instead go another, you'll have more gameplay with the puck. You'll be able to go further every time it's in your possession, don't you think?" she asked, with a grin, knowing that she was right.

"Okay," he nodded. She must have sold it to him. "Teach me your ballerina ways, Princess," he teased, giving in.

Her grin grew. "Come at me," she replied.

And he did.

* * *

 


	8. Chapter 8

**The Coffee Shop:  
Chapter 8**

It took Casey and Derek a while to say goodbye to one another. It was to be expected between the pair since they were practically attached at the hip ever since they met. But Casey, the overachiever, was packed and ready to go. She got a ride back to Toronto with Clarissa from her bio lab. She figured it was easier to do that than to ask her mom to drive all the way to Kingston just to pick her up and then drive all the way back. Plus, she was only going to be home for a month or so, she didn't have many things to bring with her.

Derek, on the other hand, didn't have to hitch a ride home. He was lucky enough to have The Prince, which had been packed and ready to go the night before, courtesy of Casey of course. Naturally, he wanted to take Casey home himself. But Casey knew his finances and she couldn't bear to have him spend the gas money just to drive her home when she had a cheaper, more environmentally friendly, option (which Lizzie would approve of). Needless to say that Derek was not pleased.

But none of that mattered anymore because it was time to go and to say goodbye for a few weeks. Or until one of them caved (which everyone knew would be sooner rather than later.) They didn't have any more time to hug and kiss, it was time to let go. Clarissa was already in the driver's seat waiting for Casey to strap into the passenger side seat and start driving.

Tangled within their tight embraces they leaned against the side of The Prince, which was parked right next to Clarissa's car. They both knew it was time to go. It wasn't nice to make Clarissa wait on the overly-attached pair.

"I'll call you when I get home," he promised while repeatedly kissing her forehead affectionately, which old Derek would have hated.

"I know," she whispered against him, squeezing his middle even tighter.

"We're being dramatic," he scoffed, embarrassed by their puke-worthy display.

"We are," she smiled, with no shame, before pulling away to look him in the eyes.

He pushed her hair back and cupped her chin to press a parting kiss against her lips.

"Get in the car, Case," he told her as gently as he could without commanding her.

She nodded only once, understanding that if she didn't move they would never part.

"Okay," she decided, pecking his lips once more before dropping her arms from around him.

She took the painful steps away from him and slowly walked towards Clarissa's car without taking her eyes off him.

He nodded again, encouraging her to get inside. And with that, she was locked and loaded. Clarissa wasted no time in pulling off the curb and off into the afternoon.

With a hand through his hair, Derek sighed heavily as he watched the car disappear from his sights until he got into The Prince to start his own long journey back home.

* * *

**McDonald's Apartment  
** **_Toronto, Ontario, Canada_ **

"So, Casey," Nora beamed with excitement, "Why don't you fill us in!" she urged her eldest daughter with much enthusiasm.

Casey smiled at her mother, knowing how much she had missed the attention.

"You haven't missed much," she promised her mom and Lizzie, who sat across her at their small dining room table. "I email updates every week!" Casey replied with a small smile. She had missed her small family, that much was obvious, but she really didn't have much to tell.

"So, _just_ work and school?" Lizzie asked with a small smile because she knew there was more. Something Casey was purposely leaving out.

"Well... there is this _one_ thing," Casey smirked, knowing that she hadn't told her mom about Derek on purpose. At first, she wasn't sure what their deal was, and after she had met his family...well she just needed to know that it was serious before she told her mom about Derek. The last guy she told Nora about was Truman… and after that fiasco, she was very selective about what she told her mom. She never wanted to look like an idiot in front of her mother (who's opinion Casey held so high) ever again.

"Yeah?" Nora asked before taking a sip of her red wine. The girls were having their first dinner together as a family, is that it was Casey's first night back home.

"There **might** be a guy." Casey teased her mom before taking a bite of her chicken casserole.

"A guy? Do tell!" Nora replied intrigued, always curious about Casey's love life.

"His names Derek Venturi. He's on the hockey team. Typical annoying, egotistical jerk, with a mushy soft center." Casey explained, with a lopsided grin.

"Sounds… interesting." Nora commented while trying not to laugh at her daughter's choice in men. That is until something in her changed and she stopped laughing suddenly. "Wait… Venturi?" Nora asked, tasting the name in her mouth. "That sounds familiar. Is he from your old high school?"

"No. He lives in Ontario. He's rarely ever in Toronto," Casey clarified, confused as to where her mother was going with that.

"Except now he has a reason to be," Lizzie quickly added with a knowing smirk.

"That name… It just sounds familiar!" Nora pushed as she sat back in her chair. Her fingers twirled her drink in her glass as her thoughts wondered a bit.

"I don't know mom, he's the first Venturi I've meet," Casey shrugged it off before going back to her delicious home-cooked meal.

Apart from the sound of silverware hitting the plates, silence fell upon the McDonald apartment. That was until Nora's voice broke the silence. "Oh! That's it. George!" she exclaimed with pride. She wasn't losing her memory as she feared. She was still as sharp as ever!

"George?!" Casey choked out; red flags waving madly in her mind. "What do you mean George?!"

"George Venturi. I knew it sounded familiar." Nora smiled, finally going back to her food with the Venturi mystery solved.

"Mom, elaborate... like now!" Casey panicked.

"Georgie! I told you about him, didn't I?" Nora asked.

"No, you didn't. Please do. Details mom. Lots of them." Casey demanded, suddenly no longer hungry.

"I meet him a few months ago at a singles thing the girls from work dragged me on. You're supposed to mingle or whatever. Anyway, I meet George there." She explained.

"George Venturi," Casey repeated.

Nora nodded, not bothering to say more.

Casey took a deep breath, trying her best not to freak out just yet. Her thoughts were spinning and she couldn't keep up with them.

"Oh, Case!" Lizzie exclaimed with bright eyes all of the sudden. "You _have_ to meet my new coach! He's the cutest guy, ever!" Lizzie gushed. And Lizzie didn't do the girl thing too often, so Casey went along with it.

"Oh yeah? Tell me about him?" she urged her little sister, storing her freak-out to the back of her mind, for further inspection later.

* * *

After dinner, everyone retired to their bedroom, everyone including Casey. That is until she couldn't stand the thoughts spinning around her head anymore.

Soon she found herself headed to her mom's bedroom for more detail about the George situation. After politely knocking she heard her mother call her inside. Casey took a shaky breath before entering.

After taking a few cautious steps inside, she found her mom curled up in bed with a book; clearly, she had gotten her love of literature from Nora.

Looking down at her fuzzy pink socks, she spoke. "Hey, mom... You have a minute?"

"Sure sweetheart." Nora smiled up at her daughter. She quickly put her book on the nightstand, but not before marking her page with a bookmark of course. She could never fold the corners over, just like Casey Nora thought that was a sin. "What's on your mind?" she asked while holding the sheets open for Casey to slip in.

Casey took the invitation and quietly closed the door behind her before making her way under the covers with her mother. Although she was in college now, and much more independent than before, she missed the warmth that her mother's comfort gave her.

Wrapped up in her mother's sheets she took a deep breath in hopes of calming herself down. It seemed to have worked because the scent of home washed over her quickly. She almost smiled.

"Can you tell me about George?" Casey tried her best not to cringe as she asked. She turned over to face her mother easier.

"George?!" Nora asked stunned that that's what was bothering Casey.

Casey nodded slowly. "How well do you know him?" she asked worried about the answer. She remembered Derek telling her that his dad was dating again... Could he be dating Nora?

After a moment of silence, Nora replied after gathering her thoughts. "Not well enough," she admitted. "Roxanne, the annoying one from HR, she kind of called dibs," Nora explained, annoyed. "Who even does that anymore?" she chuckled. " _But_ we're Facebook friends," she quickly added, making sure she gave Casey all the details.

Casey's eyes went wide and she shot up, sitting up straight in bed. "So, you're _not_ dating him?" Casey asked with a sigh of relief.

"Heavens no!" Nora quickly replied. "I would tell you girls if I was dating someone. But we are getting drinks this week after work for the holidays." She added, for whatever it was worth to Casey. "Why?" she finally asked.

Panic shot through Casey's body again. Drinks. Like... a date? "George Venturi..." Casey started, his name feeling so much heavier on her tongue now. "Is he a lawyer? Lives in Ontario... with a couple of cute kids?" she finally asked the question directly.

Nora's eyes narrowed, but she nodded along. "I believe so. How do you..." Nora trailed off, trying to piece things together herself.

Casey shook her head and squeezed her eyes shut, feeling a headache coming on fast. She had to talk to Derek, _soon_ she decided. With that in mind, she swung her legs over the bed and slipped out the covers easily.

"Have fun on your date Mom," Casey replied while trying her best to smile and not ruin a good thing for her mom. And with that, she headed back to her room without an explanation for her beyond confused mother.

* * *

It didn't take long at all for Nora to follow Casey back into her bedroom. Nora needed some kind of answers. She knocked on the partially open door before peeking her head in. Her favorite little drama queen was curled up in the fetal position, clutching a pillow to her chest.

"Casey" Nora sighed heavily, recognizing what she was looking at, but not understanding the connection just yet. "You want to tell me what all that was about?" she asked while padding over and taking a seat at the foot of Casey's bed.

"No, not really." Casey groaned into her pillow.

"Okay," Nora thought for a second. "Well, how about you tell me how you know a middle-aged man from Ontario? And should I be concerned?" Nora joked while rubbing her hands up Casey's socked feet, in hopes to ease her upset daughter into talking about what the hell was going on.

Casey laughed softly to herself but didn't say a word. She simply reached for her phone which sat on her nightstand. "You know his eldest son is in college?" Casey asked, flipping through a few things on her phone.

"Yeah. He mentioned it. Apparently, he's a handful." Nora cringed, remembering some of the details George had made in passing.

"He is," Casey confirmed with a soft smile, pulling up a picture of her and Derek hugging the night she had met his family. Marti had taken the picture. She offered her phone to her mom.

Nora grabbed the phone, examining the picture closely. "What's this?" She was confused as she looked back up at Casey after a few seconds.

"Derek." Casey shrugged, like that answered everything.

"What does Derek have to do with anything?" Nora asked, more confused than ever.

Casey smiled, knowing that her mom would ask. "Look at the next picture." She urged her mom. Casey knew the next picture was a group shot of her with the Venturi clan at the dinner the night she met them.

Nora swiped her finger on the touchscreen phone and saw what looked to be a family photo. She recognized Casey, and Derek, and George. "But that's..." Nora trailed off before looking up at Casey with wide eyes.

"Meet the Ventures Mom. _All_ of them." Casey chuckled softly before taking her phone back to look at the picture as well. That had been such a good night.

"Derek..." Nora started.

"Venturi," Casey chimed in, finishing the sentence for her.

"George is your boyfriend's father?!" Nora asked, finally getting it.

"Yep!" Casey replied, with far too much enthusiasm. But in her defense, she was trying her best not to freak out.

"Okay." Nora decided before getting up from Casey's bed quickly after hearing everything she needed. "I'll go cancel our date," Nora explained.

"You don't need to do that, mom!" Casey quickly replied. "Go out with him. Rub it in Roxanne's face!" She went on, although it killed her to say that, Casey could tell that George was a good man. And her mom deserved to at least try it.

Nora paused, pursing her lips as she debated her options. "We'll see." It was all she said before leaving Casey's bedroom. She had much to think about.

* * *

**South Street Bar and Lounge  
** **_Toronto, Ontario, Canada_ **

"So, Georgie," Nora began, with a slow smile creeping onto her lips. She tried to keep her tone of voice light and airy. But she couldn't help but flirt with George just a bit. He was a charmer, he brought it out of her, even though she knew it couldn't happen.

"Yes?" he asked with a big smile. He leaned closer to Nora, eyes locked on her.

"Your son is back home for the holidays, huh?" She asked strategically, knowing exactly how she planned this conversation to go.

George wasn't expecting that. Yes, they spoke about their children occasionally, but not enough to be brought up into a casual conversation which he thought was going in a different direction. Regardless of the strangeness, he answered her anyway.

"Yeah. He's at home, moping around because he misses his girlfriend." George explained, rolling his eyes.

"Aww, that's adorable! Do you like her?" Nora simply had to ask.

"His girlfriend?" George asked, confused once again.

"Yeah," Nora nodded, taking a sip of her drink to ease her nerves.

George shrugged easily. "Yeah, Casey's great. I meet her at his game a month or so ago. She's a charmer. Marti loved her, which I know was a big deal for Derek. And she knocks him down a bit, which I am very thankful for. I like her. I hope she sticks around." He nodded, being completely honest with Nora.

Nora nodded as well, letting silence fall upon them for a second. After a while, she took a deep breath before pulling her phone out of her clutch bag.

"I'm glad." She spoke. "I like her too," Nora added, showing George a picture of her and the girls from the summer, all smiles at the beach.

"No." George groaned throwing his head back when he realized exactly what he was looking at, and why Nora had chosen to ask about his son's love life.

"Yup," Nora nodded with a heavy-hearted sigh while putting her phone back down between them. "She's falling in love with him." She added in a sad tone. Not because she was upset about her daughter falling in love, but because of what it meant for her.

"Yeah? I can see that." He nodded, leaning back in his chair. Putting more distance between himself and Nora, they needed it now. "I've never seen Derek like this. He's usually so carefree, but now…" he trailed off, lost in his own thoughts. It was a lot to process after all.

"Yeah..." was all Nora could add to the conversation.

"So, this is our first and last date huh?" George finally said with a soft chuckle.

"Better make it a good one!" Nora replied while trying her best to smile.

"I'll do my best," George replied with that infectious smile that caught Nora's attention in the first place.

They were on the same boat: two selfless parents, who put their children first no matter what.

It was nice while it lasted.

* * *

When Nora came home from her date with George, she headed straight to the freeze to pop open her emergency ice cream stash. She found two spoons and made her way towards Casey's room.

She knocked softly before entering.

Casey was curled up in bed (no doubt waiting up for Nora), watching some late night television.

"Scoot over," Nora smiled softly, offering Casey the pint of ice cream and a spoon.

Accepting it, Casey scooted over to let her mother join her under the covers to settle in.

"You okay?" Casey asked after they had made it halfway into the ice cream carton.

"I'll be fine." Nora smile honestly at her daughter. She reached out to brushing Casey's hair out of her face. "He wasn't that cute anyway," Nora added, trying to lighten up the mood and Casey's guilty conscious (which she did not deserve)

* * *

 


	9. Chapter 9

**The Coffee Shop:**   
**Chapter 9**

_Toronto, Ontario, Canada: December 23_

It's been only two weeks since he had last seen Casey. That was all Derek could hold out on. He couldn't wait any longer. He knew he couldn't visit on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day; he owed those days to Marti. So, he compromised with his little sister. He gassed up the Prince and drove all four hours to Casey's apartment in Toronto.

Although he was anxious to see her, he was also dreading it. A lot had changed in those two weeks they were apart. Actually… okay, not much, but they had found out that their parents knew each other. And that they had gone out on a date. Granted, it was their first and last date, but still. The whole idea of it hung over them like a cloud, and Derek wasn't sure if that was going to change things between them.

Besides that, Derek was dreading giving Casey her Christmas gift. He didn't have much money, and he had to buy Marti and Ed their gifts. By the end of that, he had no money to get Casey anything. So, he resorted to making her something. He knew deep down that she was a romantic sap and would love whatever he came up with, as long as it came from the heart. But to him, Casey was very special, and she deserved a lot more than what he could give.

But, having no other option, Derek opted for a creative gift. He made a compilation video with every single picture of him and Casey from the beginning to the last pictures they took together before they left for their winter break (he even included the screenshots they took of each other during FaceTime). He even had little clips, 10-seconds of video from random times throughout the semester. He mashed it all up into a montage and then he added some music (mostly played by him and his guitar) in the background. It wasn't great, but he had put time into it, and hopefully, that was enough.

Casey ran downstairs when Derek called her to tell her that he had arrived. And that was all he really needed. Two weeks wasn't long at all, but seeing her rush into his arms, as if he was away at war for a year, well, it meant everything to him. He was truly falling in love with that spazz of a girl. And he could only hope that she felt the same.

He held her tight, indulging himself in her scent and warmth. Even if they were standing in the street in the middle of winter, there was nowhere else he'd rather be. And that was just a bit terrifying.

Eventually, the pair detached themselves from one another until they were two separate entities once more. They giggled as the cold started to set in before they ran inside Casey's building.

It was time for Derek to meet the family.

* * *

Casey had spent all day cooking. Actually cooking! At home, where she had a full kitchen and fridge with all the ingredients she needed…she could make a delicious spread. Nora offered to cook for the occasion, but Casey refused. She had promised Derek that she would cook him an actual meal that didn't involve ramen noodle that college students were all too familiar with. She ended up making a five-cheese lasagna with garlic bread, salad and a dozen cupcakes for dessert.

Derek was in awe when he entered the McDonald residence and it smelled so delicious. After he formally met Lizzie and Nora (he had informally met them via FaceTime a few days ago) Casey lead him to their small dining room that was already set and ready to go for an early dinner.

"This looks amazing," Derek nearly drooled when he saw the spread. "I knew you were good, but I didn't know you were that good!" Derek complimented Casey as he took a seat.

"Clearly you don't know who I am!" Casey replied while looking insulted by her boyfriend.

Derek stared back at her, confused for a second until he remembered what she was referring to.

Derek rolled his eyes, unsure of how the McDonalds would think about their inside joke. "Sorry, am I supposed to?" he countered, the exact way Casey had months ago.

They stared at each other intensely for a moment before the pair erupted into a fit of giggles. Their first encounter may have been ridiculous, but it got them to where they were, so it was perfect.

"Inside joke," Casey explained to her mother and sister after they had calmed down a bit. "Let's dig in!" she spoke with excitement.

* * *

After the wonderful dinner, both Nora and Lizzie went back into their bedrooms, giving Derek and Casey some much needed alone time.

Casey decided, with the enthusiasm of a kid, that it was time to exchange presents. Derek agreed with a tight smile, trying his best to hide his worry that his gift would not live up to whatever Casey had gotten him. She seemed so excited about his gift, maybe he shouldn't have made that video…

Casey pretty much skipped out of the living room to get his present from her bedroom. She quickly returned with a small red box in her hands, complete with a bow and everything. She snuggled up next to him, leaving the box in her lap as she took a deep breath before talking.

"I know your secret Derek." She started, with a very serious face.

Derek instantly panicked. "My secret?" he asked while trying his best to sound nonchalant about it.

Casey nodded. "A few months ago, before when we just had started to hang out, Sam came to The Coffee Shop and spoke to me." She explained reaching out to play with the hair at the bottom of his neck. A trick she always used to calm him down. Casey knew way too much about Derek and how to deal with him. Sometimes it scared him.

"What?" Derek asked, completely thrown off. He had no idea about that. "Why?" he asked.

Casey sensed that what Sam had said was true, that Derek was sensitive when it came to Sam. "Just doing his job as a good friend. Telling me not to hurt you," She explained before reaching out to hold Derek's hand.

"Why would he do that?" Derek asked, now calmer.

"I guess he could see this happening. And he didn't want his best friend to get hurt."

"So… what does my gift have to do with Sam?"

"Sam also told me that you don't even like coffee," Casey smirked.

Derek paled for just a second, he then rolled his eyes, "That's-"

"That," Casey went on, cutting him off, "You only drank black coffee when you were hung over." She added with a matter-of-fact tone.

"That's…true," he admitted. "But-"

"But, you came to the coffee shop, countless times… to see me!" She finished, with a great big smile.

"Maybe," he finally replied.

"And so I thought… this cute guy, who's usually hard on cash, comes into the coffee shop, when he doesn't even like coffee, just to see me. And I thought how wrong that was. I was flattered, but still, it was pretty messed up. So…I thought you could maybe use this. You know, next semester." She finished passing the small red box to Derek.

He eyed her, still a bit confused, before he took the box. He opened the top of it and smiled when he saw what laid inside. It was a gift card from The Coffee Shop.

"I'm not going to tell you how much is on it, but every time you come in now, I want you to use that, and actually order something you like. Or, just don't order anything, and come in to see me. I don't think you need an excuse anymore." She winked.

"You're amazing," he smiled softly, bending down to kiss her. "Thank you," he whispered against her mouth.

"You're welcome," she replied, pressing her lips even harder against his.

They remained that way for a while. Until Derek remembered what had to be done. He pulled away from Casey's lips slowly, his mood damped just a bit, "I guess it's my turn now," he sighed before he started scratching the back of his neck due to his nerves.

Casey sensed the change in mood and didn't understand why. "What's with the face?" she asked.

"I wanted to get you something better but… I just couldn't." he shrugged, really not wanting to tell his girlfriend that he had no money. "So, I made you this." He offered her his USB drive.

"What is it?" she asked, her eyes lighting up. She was so easy to please sometimes, it just wasn't fair. She had no idea what was on it, yet somehow she was excited about it.

"Why don't you bring your laptop out here and see?" he offered, trying to sound a bit excited about it.

And just like that, she was off again only to return with her computer. She snuggled into the couch, with Derek's arm wrapped around her, and she popped the USB in, opening the only file on it.

She pressed play and settled into Derek's arms. She was mostly silent as they watched the montage. Well, Casey watched it as Derek watched Casey nervously.

At the end of the video, Derek appeared in his bedroom at home, which Casey had only seen via FaceTime.

"Hey Princess," he began with a heavy sigh. "I suck at this. But, I thought you might like seeing how we've…changed from the beginning. You know, when we first began friends, to now. I know there's a lot of pictures that you hadn't seen before, that you weren't aware I was even taking…." He trailed off, running a hand through his hair. He had always sneaked pictures of Casey. She was his favorite subject. He couldn't understand how she managed to look amazing in every picture, whether she was just waking up at 7 am, or dressed up for a date.

"This isn't much of a gift-" Video-Derek continued.

"Yes, it is," Casey interrupted Video-Derek quickly, which only made real-Derek smile and squeeze her tighter.

"But," video-Derek went on, "After all of this I think I've realized that, through all of this…" He stopped again, searching for the right words to say, "I had no intention of falling in love with the girl in the coffee shop. But here we are. Merry Christmas, baby," And with one final look into the camera, the screen faded to black.

After a second or two, a stunned Casey closed her laptop and placed it on the coffee table. She turned towards Derek slowly. He hadn't moved an inch, scared of what her reaction would be.

"Say it again," she whispered, loud enough for only him to hear.

"Huh?" he asked confused.

"Say it again," she repeated, looking at him with her big blue eyes, which looked to be blinking back tears.

Derek smiled, taking the tears as a good sign. "I had no intentions of falling in love with the girl in the coffee shop." He repeated the line, word for word.

"Now say it… for real." Her voice cracked a bit.

Derek knew what she was asking for. He nodded, cupped her face with both of his hands, and stared down at her. "I love you," he spoke the words, for the first time. He let the words linger in the air, and the tears in Casey's eyes fell down her cheek. His thumb caught them easily, and he brushed them off. Her smile was intoxicating.

"I don't want you to say it back." He added after a moment. "I'm not telling you because I think you want to hear it or because I want to hear it back… I'm telling you because you need to know." He shrugged.

Casey shook her head, reached up and wrapped her arms around his neck and leaped into his arms, making Derek fall flat onto the couch. "Mine," she murmured against his neck before placing kisses all over his throat and face until she made her way to his lips to give him a bruising kiss.

"I know." He laughed, tightening his hold around her middle. And that was when he knew that they would figure everything out. Anything that came their way, they would figure it out.

"Best Christmas ever," Casey squealed.

And Derek could only agree.

* * *

Three and a half Years Later...

Of course, they had their ups and downs. They fought all the time, it was just who they were. It came naturally to them. They had a real rough patch during their sophomore year when they had a break. But that didn't last long, only three weeks tops. Because at the end of the day, everyone knew it was Derek and Casey and nothing would interfere with that. Not even each other.

Time flew by and suddenly they were graduating from Queens together. Their families sat next to each other in the audience as they waited to hear their kid's name to be called. They were even planning on going out together to celebrate afterward. The Venturis and the McDonalds…they had spent a lot of time together during those four years in college. Lizzie and Edwin got along wonderfully. And Nora simply adored Marti.

"Do you think they will ever…" Derek trailed off as he and Casey tried to navigate their way through the crowd to meet up with their families after the graduation ceremony was over.

"What?" Casey asked, squeezing Derek's hand as she led them through the people while trying not to lose each other. "Ever get together?" Casey asked after turning back around to look at Derek for just a second.

"Yeah. They get along so well… It's almost creepy," Derek shuttered. It was so right, it felt wrong.

"Maybe," Casey shrugged. "I don't think it would really make a difference at this point," she admitted with a smile.

"It wouldn't." Derek agreed, shaking his head. Nothing would make a difference. Nothing would tear them apart.

"I just feel bad. What if he's the Derek to her Casey?" Derek asked while trying not to sound smug about the analogy he had just used.

Casey rolled her eyes before shoving him lightly as they had finally reached their families in the parking lot. "If that's true, then they'll find their way. Just like we did," she answered as she got ready to take a bunch of graduation pictures with their families.

* * *

 


End file.
